Old Friends, New Friends
by expectopadfoot
Summary: "That date was the reason I was shocked to death when I saw that troll. Of course my hero Harry then came to save me and defeat the big bad troll." Tonks ended dramatically, placing a sloppy kiss on Harry's red cheek. He would die before he admitted this to her, but when she said that, he felt rather proud of himself.
1. Prologue

Sirius Black was a happy man.

Perhaps it should be elaborated a bit? Yeah?

Sirius felt happy at that precise moment. He had everything he wanted; caring friends, a loving family (a part of the family actually. His parents passed away, Regulus, Cissy and Bella didn't bother to keep in touch. Not that he wanted them to or anything), a place of his own and even a flying motorbike! Not to mention his extremely good looks that made him so desirable to women. To sum it all up, Sirius was a very happy man.

Of course, with the war going on, Voldemort's forces were causing trouble on a daily basis. Familiar faces would appear in the Daily Prophet, the Dark Mark hovering ominously above their homes. Lily and James were in danger with the prophecy about their son Harry; Remus couldn't find a job and was working in a muggle company. Things were far from perfect in his life. But he decided to push those unhappy thoughts aside for now and just enjoy the time with James and Lily, who had brought little Harry with them, and Ted and Andromeda, who had brought Nymphadora.

"-and James would jump around like it was him riding his first toy broomstick." Lily was saying, amused and exasperated at the same time.

"You gotta see him Padfoot! I swear he's a natural at flying!" James exclaimed.

Everyone laughed at James' excitement, leaving him quite bemused.

Ted decided to cheer him up a bit. "I'm sure Harry will be a great quidditch player one day."

James' face brightened up and he patted Ted's arm. "At least someone understands how I feel!"

His expression, according to Lily, was 'much too cute' and she placed a big kiss on his cheek. James tried to return one on her lips.

"Get a room, you two!" Sirius grumbled, exaggerating the look of disgust on his face.

"Look who's talking! We don't remember complaining when you were dragging Mary MacDonald into that broom-"

"Ahem! Why don't we get another round of Butterbeers?" Andromeda cut off James before he could finish, looking pointedly at Nymphadora, who was giggling at James' words.

"Er… yeah…. I'll do that. Accio Butterbeer!"Sirius muttered,red in the face. Lily smirked at him.

"Aww… blushing now, are we, Sirius? You're lucky that Nymphadora is here to save you some embarras-"

"Don't call me Nymphadora, it's Tonks!" Nym- er... Tonks, who was enjoying the conversation before, now scowled, as her hair turned red.

"Oh I'm so sorry dear, it won't happen again." Lily smiled apologetically at her.

"It's fine Mrs Potter." The girl replied, her hair turning back to blue.

"Nymphie, it's your name dear-"

"Don't call me Nymphie, mum!" she cut off Andromeda's words and turned away, pouting.

Lily almost cooed at how cute she looked pouting, but not wanting to upset the young metamorphmagus, she kneeled beside her and softly said, "Look at me dear."

Tonks turned to look at the beautiful witch, who was looking lovingly at her. Behind Lily, James and Sirius shared a smile. They knew how Lily had the ability to bring out a smile from anyone within a few minutes. Lily Potter was like a patronus to the ones she loved. Of course, when she was pissed, it was a completely different story.

"Listen to me. There's nothing wrong with your name, it's beautiful! It means a gift from the fairies, and you are exactly that." Lily beamed at her. Tonks blushed at this praise and mumbled, "It sounds stupid."

"It doesn't sound stupid sweetie. But if it upsets you, how about we call you Dora for now?" Tonks (or Dora) smiled brightly at this. "It's great Mrs Potter!"

Lily's smile faded and she replied without emotion. "You're welcome."

Tonks noticed her coldness and wondered what on earth she'd said wrong. She failed to see James hiding a big smile. He knew what was coming.

"Would you like another sandwich Tonks?" Lily asked the little girl, who was now completely bewildered by the use of her last name. Didn't they just agree to call her Dora?

"Um... Mrs Potter? Why are you calling me Tonks? Aren't you supposed to call me Dora now?" she asked, a bit of hurt in her voice.

Lily stared at her for a moment and then, patting Harry, who was sleeping in her lap, she slowly said "Why I should call you Dora when you don't call me Lily?"

Tonks squealed with laughter and ran to the redhead and hugged her tightly. Lily returned the hug with one arm, the other keeping Harry safe. 'Lily is awesome!' Tonks thought happily.

"Okay Lily, I want a sandwich" Tonks held out a hand to Lily. Lily laughed and kissed her forehead before passing her a sandwich which she attacked immediately.

Andromeda smiled at the pair. She loved her daughter very much; no one dared to claim otherwise. Caught up in the joyous moment of seeing the face of her baby girl, she'd named her Nymphadora- a gift from the Nymphs. She never foresaw the dislike her daughter would show to the name. While Andromeda was too stubborn to admit that the name sounded stupid, she couldn't help but feel a bit guilty. She was amazed at how Lily found such an amazing solution to her daughter's problem. How come she didn't think of that name? And despite her relief, she couldn't help but notice that Lily had an unnaturally strong ability to love others. She glanced at Harry, whose forehead was now being kissed by Lily. He was quite lucky to have a mother like that.

If only she knew.

Tonks was also staring at Harry. He was so little and so cute! She hesitated for a moment, then-

"Er... Lily?"

"Yes honey?"

"Do you mind if I hold Harry a bit? I promise I won't drop him." Tonks solemnly asked, already fearing Lily would say no. Her clumsiness wasn't a secret, thanks to Sirius.

Lily was, to be honest, a bit worried. Dora wasn't famous for her balance and more importantly, she was just a five year old. But looking at her puppy dog eyes which, incidentally, were green like Lily and Harry's, she decided to cast a cushioning charm to his blanket, kissed his cheeks lightly and handed the sleeping baby to Dora. Dora stared at the baby in her arms and her face broke into a huge smile. The change of hands, however, woke Harry up. The girl tensed up, trying to think of ways to prevent the crying that was sure to follow.

To her surprise, however, Harry didn't cry. His eyelids fluttered, his small lips forming a small 'o' and he began to look around. His eyes fell on a pair of grey eyes that were looking right back at him. He reached out a chubby hand and little fingers caught a lock of violet hair. She smiled and turned her hair pink which Harry found very entertaining and he let out a happy giggle. Dora couldn't help herself. His laughter was completely disarming. She kissed his forehead in an attempt to copy Lily; she even turned her hair red for good measure. But somehow Harry found this even more amusing and was now laughing madly. Tonks scowled at him and was going to reprimand him when he suddenly reached out again and grabbed her nose. Outraged, Tonks glared at Harry, but she couldn't stay mad at him forever and eventually joined him laughing.

"Your girl is getting awfully chummy with my godson, 'Meda. Do we see the beginning of an epic love story here?" Sirius had to duck from Andromeda's playful blow. "You never know Sirius, I happen to remember old Bertha Jorkins being quite fond of you in your first year. She was a fifth year back then, wasn't she?"

Sirius quipped, "Fourth. I'd have dated her if she had a bit of brain in her. But look at Nym... I mean Dora, she's totally smitten with the boy!"

James cut in. "That, ladies and gentlemen, is the famous Potter good looks. Girls can't resist them, y'know." Ted and Andromeda started laughing and Lily rolled her eyes, but Sirius loudly protested, claiming that his own smashing looks were unrivalled in the history of Hogwarts.

"Ah my good friend, you might flatter yourself by thinking that, but the best looking girl in Hogwarts belongs to the one and only James Potter. So you may want to transform yourself, then curl up and die with your misery, Padfoot." James wrapped his arms around Lily's waist possessively and held her tightly. Lily smiled and gave James a peck on the lips and James kissed the tip of her nose in return and held her, if possible, even closer.

"I don't know how Harry stands being near you two. People might think you got married two weeks ago instead of two years." Sirius grumbled.

"It's called love, Sirius. Try it sometimes, it's fun." Lily replied cheerfully. Sirius didn't look convinced, though. "Yeah, if being in love means I'll always have that dopey grin on my face, looking like I just had a great shag with a Veela-"

"What does shag mean?" Dora asked curiously, Harry looking comfortable in her arms.

Sirius was cowering under the murderous glares from Andromeda and Lily. Death Eaters he could handle easily, but he was absolutely frightened now. Lily Evans had a reputation in Hogwarts for her temper. No one wanted to get in the bad books of the former Head Girl, unless they knew better. On the other hand, Andromeda's temper wasn't short-fused, but when she got mad, even Bellatrix ran away from her.

Trying not to stammer, Sirius managed to find his voice after a few tense and awkward moments. "Er... you see Dora, it's... um... it's a lot like quidditch. Like... er... Lily here lends James her snitch in exchange for James' broom-"

"Lily, you don't have a broom? I can lend you mine if James doesn't!" Dora said happily.

Lily was almost as red as her hair while Sirius and James howled with laughter. Throwing a dirty look at them, she smiled at Dora. "That's nice of you honey, but don't worry. James can't live a day without the snitch. I think he polished his broom for the last eight years so that he won't miss it in our match."

After three minutes, Dora became suspicious. The adults were still laughing from Lily's comment and she suspected they were using some kind of code language in front of her. She made a mental note to find out the real meaning of "shag" from a reliable source.

Suddenly, three silver phoenixes materialized in front of them and Dumbledore's voice came out from them, each facing James, Lily and Sirius. "Report to the headquarters immediately. The McKinnons are under attack!"

The happy mood of the room vanished along with the patronuses. The three of them stood up and grabbed their cloaks and drew their wands. Lily spoke first.

"Andromeda, can you keep Harry for a few hours? I'm so sorry, I would've left him with James' mum but we don't have the time-"

"Of course we can keep him Lily. Go and take care of yourself. Pick him up when it's over." Andromeda's voice was strained. She knew about the Order of Phoenix, but didn't join partly because she didn't like Dumbledore's method (she thought he was too soft. It was war, and playing fair in war wasn't a good choice in her opinion) and partly because she didn't want to face a situation where she might be forced to duel Bella or Cissy. Despite their arguments, Andromeda still loved her younger sisters. She forced a reassuring smile at Lily and looked at Harry who was still in Dora's hands. Lily took him from her, kissed his forehead and murmured "I love you baby". Handing him back to the older woman, Lily took a deep breath and said "He'll be okay. Let's go." The three of them disappeared with a small crack.

Harry stared at where his parents were a moment ago and then shifted his eyes to the woman holding him. Andromeda smiled at the adorable boy in her arms. Dora was also looking at the emerald eyes of Harry Potter. With a smile, she started planning on how to keep Harry entertained for the next few hours.

Three weeks later, Dora was crying with her face down in the pillow. You-Know-Who killed Lily and James, Sirius was thrown into Azkaban and Harry was left with his muggle relatives. Dora asked her mother why they couldn't keep Harry instead and Andromeda replied something like "that meddling old fool". She sadly wondered when she would meet Harry again, if at all, and if he would remember her.

"He is one year old. He won't remember me next year." She told herself, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Poor Harry" she sobbed.

Indeed. Poor Harry.

_A/N: review please? I know that Tonks is much older than Harry in canon, but this is my story and I decided to make her a bit younger. In addition to this, there will be things in the next chapter that will not coincide with the canon timeline, consider them AU. _


	2. First Day

**2. First Day**

"Potter, Harry."

"Did she say Potter?"

"Is it Harry Potter?"

"Oh my God, Harry Potter?"

"Seriously, it's Potter?"

"He's scrawny!" a girl complained.

"I don't believe it, it's Harry Potter!" another exclaimed.

"Blimey, Harry Potter!" a boy said nervously.

"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat shouted.

The cheers that came from the Gryffindor table were ear-splitting. The Hufflepuffs, Ravenclaws and even some Slytherins looked disappointed.

"Tonks?"

No response.

"Tonksie-Wonksie?"

No response.

"Oi mate! What's the matter with you?"

Tonks turned around. Edward Becker, one of her best mates, was watching her impatiently. She didn't put up any fake expressions to fool Edward. Instead, she smiled sadly and said "He looks a lot like his father, y'know."

"You knew the Potters?" Edward asked with astonishment. He had been friends with her since their first week at Hogwarts but she never mentioned the Potters, as far as he recalled.

"Yeah. They were great people, especially Lily. She was beautiful and amazing. You couldn't meet her and not love her. And James loved her to the point of a fault. They were such a nice couple... Poor Harry." Her voice was almost a whisper now. Edward leaned in to hear her words properly. Tonks just put her head on his shoulder and sniffed sadly, dabbing at her eyes. Awkwardly, Edward freed an arm and put it around Tonks to pat her arms. Inside, he was totally befuddled. Tonks was never the type to cry. Over the four years of knowing her, he never saw her cry. If she was very upset, she brooded for a while and then went up to her dormitory to "let out the heat". These incidents were rather rare, and took place no more than twice or thrice a year. Usually Tonks was loud, dynamic and a little over enthusiastic at times. She devoted a big part of her time to causing mischief and getting away with it. She also happened to possess an extraordinarily nasty mouth and could make sailors blush during one of her rants. She blamed it on "being a Black", but didn't seem too bothered to change her habits. However, this Tonks was totally new to Edward. He guessed she was somehow related to the Potters, considering that seeing their son evoked such a reaction from her.

"What's the matter honey?" Hestia Jones, her other best friend asked quietly. Unlike Edward she had seen Tonks crying before (though never in public). It was extremely rare, but Tonks was a girl after all. A lot of people, especially Slytherins, picked on her and even insulted her for her rare ability. Tonks always got her revenge, ironically using the same talent they hated so much. No one threw shit at Tonks and got away with it, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt. Metamorphmagus or not, she was human.

"Tell ya later" Tonks said in a raspy voice and managed a small but genuine smile at her. Hestia and Edward exchanged significant looks; they needed to talk. In the meantime, Tonks managed to recover a bit and quietly started eating.

Meanwhile, at the Gryffindor table (which was the loudest as usual) Harry Potter was sitting between Hermione Granger and Neville Longbottom, who he befriended on the Hogwarts Express. He liked both of them despite that Hermione and Neville were completely opposite (Hermione was a muggleborn, smart and somewhat bossy girl, while Neville was pureblood, a bit dim and seemed scared even of his toad). Further down the table, two redheaded twins were boisterously chatting with everyone nearby. A burly fifth or sixth year was boasting about the new broom he got over the summer; another redheaded first year, who looked a bit like the twins, was shoving food down his throat like there was no tomorrow. Beside him, two first year girls wrinkled their noses in disgust. The Gryffindor ghost was demonstrating how he was 'Nearly Headless' to a pair of first year boys. Harry was watching all of this lazily when he had the feeling that someone was watching him. Half expecting to see a crazy fan girl drooling (no, he's not being arrogant, he just got it a lot within the half an hour he was inside the castle) or something similar, he met two pairs of eyes. The first belonged to a blond Slytherin.

Harry's first meeting with Draco Malfoy had not been pleasant. For Malfoy, that is. The blond ponce, flanked by two faithful cronies, strutted into their compartment, insulted both Neville and Hermione (for brains and blood respectively) and held out his hand to Harry like he expected Harry to feel honoured and become his friend immediately. When Harry voiced his opinions about Malfoy, needless to say, he did not take it gracefully and settled for insulting all of them. That is when Harry had an idea.

"Hey Malfoy,"

"What Potter?" Draco sneered.

"You know that the headmaster appoints spies amongst students to watch out for potential troublemakers, don't you?" Harry said with a smirk. Malfoy's eyes widened; he knew nothing of that sort. Was it possible that either Potter or the mudblood was a spy? He decided not to risk it.

"Y...yeah, I mean of course I knew that Potter! How could I not have known? My father was one." He improvised in an attempt to intimidate Potter a bit. Harry was strained from trying to keep a straight face.

"Ahh... then you will know what I mean when I say it's not advisable to be in the bad graces of certain students." He subtly took a glance at Hermione (who tried to look like the story wasn't anything new to her). Malfoy noticed the glance and with an alarmed look, almost ran away from the compartment, Crabbe and Goyle followed stupidly. Waiting for a moment to make sure they were really gone, Harry burst out laughing and Hermione joined him. Neville, on the other hand, didn't get the joke and was nervously eyeing Hermione as if she would suddenly declare him unfit for attending Hogwarts. Seeing his discomfort, Harry explained that there weren't really anything like spies on the train and that he pulled that out of his arse to get rid of Malfoy. Neville visibly relaxed and joined in the laughter.

Draco, immediately after settling in the Slytherin table, asked a prefect if there were spies on the Hogwarts Express, but the prefect simply laughed. "Kids these days will believe anything you say" he said as Draco's face was flushed from embarrassment and anger. He kept glaring at the Gryffindor Scarhead with loathsome eyes.

Draco's glare did not affect Harry. He could almost hear Malfoy's mind screaming for revenge, and he decided he'd face it when he had to. So he turned his attention to the other pair of eyes that were on his back for quite a time. The girl was a Hufflepuff, probably fourth year. The most noticeable aspect of her appearance was her violet hair. It reminded him of some new fashion among muggle teenagers that his Uncle thoroughly voiced his disgust at. At first Harry thought she was one of the numerous students who were goggling at his scar, but something told him that wasn't the case. Her face had a sad look that confused Harry. It was quite unsettling, like he was supposed to know something but he simply forgot it. His thoughts were interrupted by Dumbledore's closing speech and after singing the school song, they all went to their respective dorm rooms, where Harry met his roommates Ronald Weasley (The Boy Who Ate), Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan. He was already friends with Neville, so all his dorm mates were pretty friendly, though they all peeked at his scar when they thought he wasn't looking. All in all, when he climbed into his four-poster bed in a magical castle hundreds of miles away from the Dursleys, he felt that he was, for the first time in years, at home.

The next day was, in a single word, chaotic. Harry couldn't find the way to his classes, and it didn't help that Hermione was informing him of the traps and trick stairs all around the castle (Harry was sure that Hermione's roommates had to listen to her reciting extracts from Hogwarts: A History in her sleep). After a disgusting Potions class (why did Snape hate him so much?), a tricky Charms class and an extremely difficult Transfiguration class, followed by a quick lunch (it had been a great accomplishment to have finally reached the Great Hall), they were off to their flying lesson.

Tonks was in her Charms class when Professor McGonagall entered and took away Oliver Wood. Before the door closed, Tonks caught a glimpse of a very scared looking Harry Potter standing behind the head of Gryffindor. She wondered why McGonagall wanted Wood to meet Harry. She could think of only quidditch where Wood was concerned, but how would that involve Harry? He was a first year who'd just started. Did he even know how to play quidditch?

Her musings were interrupted by the tiny Charms Professor. "Miss Tonks, let's see your cup then." Startled, she looked at the cup. She was supposed to make it dance. Waving her wand, she shouted the incantation. However, instead of dancing, the cup jumped from her desk and smashed on the floor.

_Oh bugger._

Dinner at Great Hall was never a quiet affair and today was no different. It was just another evening for the students of Hogwarts who were having a great dinner after an exhausting weekday. A certain raven-haired wizard, however, was feeling quite dizzy with excitement. He was recruited to the Gryffindor quidditch team as a Seeker, not to mention the youngest one in the century. Neville and Hermione were both surprised, to say the least. Neville was in the Hospital wing when he outflew Malfoy and was eventually seen by McGonagall, but Ron's detailed description caused poor Nev to stare at Harry in awe. Hermione, on the other hand, was being a right pain in the arse. He loved that girl, no doubt, but she had a tunnel mind when it came to rules and regulations. She did not understand that losing a few points was far better than losing one's pride. She still thought it was wrong of Harry to fly after Malfoy after Madam Hooch clearly forbade them to. It wasn't until Harry asked if she'd rather he was in detention instead of having dinner that she left him alone. The Weasley twins came and congratulated him quietly and three other girls, led by Oliver Wood, came towards him and introduced themselves. Angelina Johnson, Katie Bell and Alicia Spinnet were, apparently, his teammates. When they went back to their seats, Harry felt a sense of happiness. He really loved flying and his teammates looked quite friendly. _Quidditch is going to be awesome!_

His happy thoughts were interrupted when Hermione nudged his side. He looked at her questioningly and she leaned towards him to whisper, "You don't happen to know that pink haired girl from the Hufflepuff table, do you? She seemed very interested in your movements." Harry looked at the girl, who was looking anywhere but at Harry. Her looks just screamed '_I was looking at you until you looked back and now I'm pretending that I did not look at you.'_ Harry felt he had seen her somewhere, but he did not remember seeing anyone with pink hair at Hogwarts. Then suddenly he realized that this girl looked awfully similar to the one staring at him at the opening feast. Talking of which, he couldn't see the violet haired girl anywhere on the table. _Maybe they were twins_, he thought, _like the Weasleys and Patils._ It still did not explain why there was only one of them at a time. Shrugging to himself, he turned his attention back to his food.

On the next table, Tonks was cursing herself. She had gone back to staring at Harry and was caught almost red-handed in the act. She saw Harry frown at her and then return to his dinner. She let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. He probably thought she was a stalker.

_Fucking great!_

_Harry considers you a stalker now. Good job Nymphadora, have a biscuit._

Her sour mood thankfully didn't last long. A deep voice called from her back. "Hey, Tonks."

Eddie Carmichael was standing with a grin. She smiled back brightly. "Wotcher Eddie. What's up?"

Eddie offered an easy smile and replied, "Yeah, all fine. So how was your summer? Did something crazy?"

Tonks laughed and said "You bet I did. What about your summer?"

"It was okay, nothing special. Listen, you know there's a Hosgmeade weekend later this month?" She nodded and he resumed. "I was wondering if you wanted to go with me?"

Tonks offered another bright smile and replied "Sure, why not? It's a date then. What hair would you like?"

Eddie snickered and replied "Veela blonde would be nice if you don't mind."

Tonks mock-glared at him and growled "Careful, Carmichael. Just because I agreed to a date doesn't mean I can't hex the hair off your head. Laughing at his slightly alarmed expression, she waved at him and paid full attention towards the plate in front of her. _Well, at least something went right today._

With that thought in her mind, she reached for her goblet and accidentally knocked it over her plate. As Edward chuckled beside her, she scowled at the offending goblet.

_A/N: I apologize if the chapter seems rushed. I didn't want to waste time in already-known events. Review please? _


	3. Halloween: A Bad Day

**3. Halloween: A Bad Day**

Harry was mad. Very mad. His anger was directed at Ron Weasley. The git had insulted Hermione for being able to cast a spell no one else could. It was obvious that he was jealous of her being smarter than him, and the worst part was that Hermione got upset and disappeared. No one saw her until that evening, when Lavender Brown informed them that she was crying in the girls' toilets and had asked everyone to leave her alone. Against his better judgment, Harry decided to give her some time alone. He would look for her after the Halloween feast. She would have calmed down a bit by then.

In the middle of the feast, however, Professor Quirrel ran into the Great Hall with a horrified look on his face and stammered at Dumbledore, "Troll! In the dungeons… thought you ought to know." With that, he fainted on spot. _Some Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher!_ Harry thought.

As everyone began to panic, Dumbledore rose to his feet and ordered everyone to be silent. It took some time, but eventually he managed to instruct the prefects to escort their respective house students to their common rooms and called all the teachers to go with him to the dungeons. Noticing that Snape went a different way from the other teachers, Harry followed Percy Weasley to the common room. They were nearly there when he remembered Hermione. She didn't know about the troll.

He slipped away from the crowd and no one noticed him as everyone was trying to get to their common rooms as fast as possible. Once out of sight of the students, he started sprinting. When he reached the girls' toilets, he saw Hermione standing there with tearstains on her face. Allowing her a look of sympathy, he grabbed her arms and whispered, "We have to get out of here Hermione, there's a troll out there somewhere. We have to go to the common room as soon as possible." Hermione's expression of sadness changed to fear and at that precise moment, there was a loud grunt coming from the bathroom. Without pausing to think, Harry grabbed the door and locked it and urged Hermione to run when a scream came from the bathroom.

Tonks was absolutely terrified. A fully grown mountain troll was coming towards her and the worst part was that she was frozen with fear. She let out a scream. On top of everything today, this was too much. She sincerely hoped this was a very bad nightmare and she would wake up anytime and Hestia would be shouting at her to get her lazy arse out of bed. When a small chunk of stone hit her stomach, she collapsed and started crying. Let the troll kill her. It didn't matter anymore.

She dimly registered someone sending red sparks at the troll. She wiped her eyes and saw him. It was Harry. As the troll turned away from her and pointed its club at Harry, her mind stopped working and she just sat there and witnessed what happened next.

Harry's mind worked with amazing clarity. If someone asked him how he planned to get out of this situation, he couldn't say, but he knew he could. When he first saw the troll advancing towards the girl, he knew he needed to distract it. Sending red sparks he caught the beast's attention. He quickly analysed his surroundings. Hermione seemed to have fainted at the sight of the troll. (Why was she in Gryffindor again?) He didn't know any spells powerful enough to cause real damage to a fully-grown mountain troll. He looked at the club that was about ten seconds from being swung back to crush his body.

_WingardiumLeviosa!_

Knocked down by its own club, the troll now covered most of the floor. Careful not to step on any part of it, Harry went to the girl sitting on the floor in a corner. She had dark brown hair that was mostly covering her face. Feeling extremely awkward, Harry asked, "Erm… are you okay?" The girl looked up and he recognized her immediately. She was the one looking strangely at him at the Starting Feast and at dinner the other day. He realized she probably dyed her hair very often, possibly every day. There was no way three girls with the same face and different hair colours were running around Hogwarts. The girl stared at him for a moment and then nodded. Harry was about to say something but at that moment, the doors flew wide open and Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape and Professor Quirrell barged in the room. Quirrell gasped at the sight of the troll.

After a few moments of the Head of Gryffindor looked at Hermione, then glanced at Tonks and broke the silence. "What happened to them?"

Gulping, Harry said, "Hermione fainted when she saw the troll and I think she is just in shock." After reviving Hermione (who looked ready to faint again when she saw the troll lying on the ground and the three professors facing her) and checking on Tonks, McGonagall demanded an explanation from Harry. He told her that he came to the bathroom to warn Hermione and they found 'that girl' already inside and that he levitated the club and dropped it on the troll's head. McGonagall considered him for a long moment and then asked them to leave but not before awarding him fifteen points for bravery. Snape looked like he had swallowed a lemon, but remained silent the whole time.

Once out of the bathroom, Tonks cleared her throat and called "Harry?" When he turned to look at her, she pulled him into a hug and whispered "Thank you, Harry." Harry was flabbergasted. This unknown girl was hugging and crying on his shoulder and needless to say he felt terribly awkward, but in a strange way, it also felt good. No one had ever hugged him before and the friendliest touch he'd received before Hogwarts was his maths teacher patting his back when he got the highest in the test, but later he was locked in his cupboard for three days for getting better marks than Dudley. He hesitantly patted the girl's back and she freed him after a moment, apparently embarrassed.

Tonks was not embarrassed. She was mortified. How could she lose control like that? In front of Harry, no less! In her defence, she'd had a truly horrible day. It had started with her date with Eddie Carmichael.

Tonks wore her normal pink hair and a warm jumper with jeans. She wasn't a bit nervous. She knew it wasn't going to be anything big. She hoped she would have a good time with Eddie and maybe sneak in a Firewhiskey later. When they met in the Great Hall (Eddie was from Ravenclaw) Eddie immediately said, "Tonks, you look nice but can you turn your hair blonde for the day?" She was offended a bit but did as she was told. Their journey to Hogsmeade was pleasantly normal. They chatted about school work, mutual friends and people around them. When the carriages reached the village, he informed her that they would be meeting a couple of his cousins at the Three Broomsticks for lunch. Shrugging, she took off her cloak, it was warmer than she'd expected. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Eddie checking out her bust. Smirking, she made them a bit larger and was amused to see the gobsmacked look on the poor guy's face. Caught in the act, he asked nervously, "You can… er… change your body parts too? I thought it was just your face and hair." Laughing, she replied, "I can change whatever I have. For instance, I could look like a guy very convincingly, but I can't grow a banana or berries if you know what I mean." She gave him a cheeky wink as he turned red at the mention of "banana and berries". After they calmed down he suddenly perked up and said with a glint in his eyes, "Hey can you keep your chest like that till lunch? My cousin Alan always takes really hot girls for dates and used to tell me how I couldn't have someone like that. It would be awesome to watch his face when I bring someone as hot as you look right now!" She offered him a nod and a chuckle but inside she was telling herself that lunch was not going to be a pleasant event.

Their time before lunch was surprisingly okay. Except for a sense of apprehension, Tonks felt at ease. They went to Honeydukes where they tried the 'Unusual Tastes' like the Blood Lollipops and the Hairy Floss. Tonks was brave enough to try a Cockroach Cluster and to her surprise, it tasted good. They browsed Zonko's for a while and Eddie tried to coax Tonks into going to Madam Puddifoot's, but she firmly refused. After taking a peek at Gladrag'sWizardwear, they finally headed to the Three Broomsticks. Eddie called out to his cousin Alan who was talking to Madam Rosmerta. Alan came over and greeted her with a smile and a nod and shook hands with Eddie. They approached an empty table but before they could sit, Eddie tried to take her arms or her waist or maybe he had some completely different intention but his action resulted in Tonks being pushed to the side and consequently trip over ,but thankfully she caught herself before she had to land arse first on the floor. Stammering an apology to her, Eddie quickly sat down before anything else went wrong. _Wise choice you stupid Ravenclaw._

Once they settled down, Alan looked at Eddie and asked him, "So who's your pretty friend, Ed?" Tonks smiled at him and he grinned back. Eddie proudly announced, "This is Tonks. We are on a date. Tonks dear, say hello to my cousin Alan."

Trying not to laugh at Eddie's pompousness, she winked at Alan."Wotcher, Alan."

"Pleased to meet you, Tonks." They had a nice lunch together where they talked a bit. Tonks was talking more with Alan as he was much more easy-going and friendly. To her relief, Alan didn't try to flirt with her or anything. She wouldn't have minded if he did, but she was sure Eddie wouldn't be very understanding if his cousin bested him again. As it was, Eddie wasn't happy when they parted. He was cold and even rude to her on their way back to the castle. Realizing it was only delaying the inevitable, she grabbed his arm and forced him to face her. He had an expression of disgust and anger etched on his face. Sighing, she asked "What's wrong with you?"

"You are wrong with me, Tonks. You!" he said with a sneer.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked with gritted teeth. He laughed humorlessly at that.

"Oh I don't know! I bring a girl on a date and she flirts with someone else; how could that possibly be wrong?"

Tonks was losing her patience. "I did not flirt! If you can't tell the difference between flirting and normal conversation, it's no mystery why you had no luck with girls before." He turned red at this. "You don't know what you're talking about! Alan tried to make me look stupid by taking you away, because for once I had someone who had a better figure than his usual dates. You should've talked with me so that he could understand that you chose me over him, but no! You had to be a complete bitch and laugh with him because you can't get enough guys in your pants. It's no wonder you didn't have a boyfriend for more than a couple of weeks. Once they're done shagging you, they don't bother to-"

SMACK!

She slapped him hard on the face. Tears were threatening to burst out of her eyes, but she used her ability to hide them for the moment. "So it wasn't about me; you just took me because you wanted Alan to think you're shagging a hotter chick than he is, and that had to be me because who better than a metamorphmagus who can fit her arse and tits to any size and shape you want? You know what I think of Alan? He might be a player, but he knows what to do around a girl and that's why he, not you, gets the good birds. And about my boyfriends, I don't have to share the reasons behind my break ups but I know that people want to go out with me, unlike you-"

"That's only because you can look like their best fantasy in bed! What else would a bloke date you for?" he shouted angrily.

There was a very uncomfortable silence for a few seconds. Eddie seemed to be coming to his senses and realized what just came out of his mouth, but Tonks pointed her wand at him and his hair vanished and painful boils covered his head. Screaming, he threw a tooth growing curse at her and ran away.

Using her abilities, she shrank her teeth to normal and calmly headed to the girl's toilets. Another girl was crying in there. A first year Gryffindor, as much she could understand in her troubled mind. The bushy hair was somehow familiar, but she didn't have the heart to find out. She sat down in a corner and started to sob. Eddie's words hurt so much because everything he'd said about her was true. She didn't have anything else that could catch a guy's attention. Who would look at an average looking tomboyish girl who was more often in trouble than not? She cried until she didn't have any tears left in her and then she heard a loud grumble and the ground shook. A troll was walking towards her. When a stray stone hit her stomach, she cried again.

Now she was standing in front of Harry Potter, the boy she'd just hugged for saving her life. For her it wasn't a big deal, she hugged everyone she knew. But Harry did not know her and probably thought that she was touched in the head. Harry sure had a nice impression of her.

"Er… do you know me?" he asked, as if afraid to offend her. But she was troubled. She would've told him all about their past, but she felt this was not a good time.

"Of course, who doesn't know Harry Potter? You are the freaking Boy-Who-Lived!" she said with false enthusiasm, but it was hard not to notice the darkening of his eyes as she said it._ What did I say wrong?_

"Oh. I guess." He replied. She managed a smile and said "I'm Tonks, by the way. Sorry for getting all over you. I tend to hug people a lot. And thanks for saving me."

He returned an awkward smile and said "No problem. Nice meeting you Tonks. See you around."

As she bid him goodnight and saw him leave for the Gryffindor common room, she swore he turned his head a bit but stopped himself. Sighing, Tonks whispered to herself, "You don't remember me, do you?"

_A/N: I hope you liked the idea of Harry saving Tonks instead of Hermione. She was already friends with him so I didn't want to waste such an incident. Please review. I love it when you review.__ :)_


	4. An Adventurous Chat

_A/N: First of allI want to make it perfectly clear that Harry does NOT remember Tonks. It would be ridiculous if he did. Harry doesn't even remember his parents, let alone Tonks. But you will see in this chapterthat he hasn't totally forgotten her either. ;) Enjoy!_

**4. An Adventurous Chat**

It was almost a month before Tonks met Harry again and thankfully there wasn't a troll around this time. In fact, Tonks found the situation quite funny in the beginning.

It was near midnight and Tonks had just sneaked out of the Hufflepuff common room. Edward had tried, as always, to talk her out of it but he, as always, failed. She morphed to look like a Slytherin girl who had offended her by calling her a 'cheap slut'. Her plan was to take her form and snog a few random guys as retribution. However, she was pleasantly surprised to see a panting Harry Potter running down the corridor towards her. He came to a stop when he noticed her. "Wotcher Harry." She said happily. Instead of replying, however, Harry looked at her suspiciously. Then she realized that she still looked like that Slytherin bint. She morphed back and Harry gasped as the blond, spotty Slytherin prefect turned to a pink haired Tonks before his eyes. She smirked at his reaction.

"T..Tonks? Is that you?" he asked uncertainly.

"The one and only." she announced in a proud tone.

Harry was still shocked but he managed to put aside his surprise for a more pleasant time. "Er… right. Listen Tonks, Filch is looking for me and I'm not supposed to be out if bed at this time-"

"Filch's after you? Shit Harry, you could've warned me or something! Let's hide before his awful cat finds us." Grabbing Harry's arm, she pulled him towards a secret passageway she knew was there. She stumbled over a few times but managed to stay on her feet. They waited in the dark silence for a couple of minutes and then they went (Harry followed Tonks, that is) out of the other side of the passageway. Tonks couldn't say exactly where they were so they quietly entered the next door. Tonks unlocked the door and entered, ushering Harry to come in. When he entered, Harry froze. A giant three headed dog was looking right back at him. Slowly he nudged Tonks and when she looked at what he was pointing at, she almost fainted.

After he dragged her out of the door, Tonks came back to her senses and was about to scream but Harry put an arm on her mouth before Filch could find them. When she calmed down a bit, he removed his arm and she mouthed 'Thank you.' Nodding, he ushered her to a nearby empty classroom and released the breath he was holding. Tonks followed him into the room and slid down to the floor. Looking at her, Harry asked the first thing that came to his mind. "How did you change your face back there?"

Tonks looked at him with a disbelieving expression. "We run across a three-fucking-headed dog and you ask how I change my fucking face? Are you a freak or something?" she exclaimed.

He immediately looked down and mumbled "Sorry." Caught up in her rant, she didn't immediately notice the haunting look in his eyes but when she did, she knew she said exactly the wrong thing.

Mentally cursing her mouth, she dropped down on her knees and said in a timid voice, "Harry, I'm really sorry. I wish I could blow off my fat stupid mouth, but believe me, I didn't mean a word. I was sort of freaked out after seeing that dog and I couldn't think straight and when you asked that I went crazy. So yeah, I'm really sorry about it."

Harry looked in her eyes and saw that her apology was sincere. Quietly he said, "It's fine, Tonks."

She was a bit intrigued by his strong reaction and couldn't help asking, "Umm… Harry, can I ask you something? You don't have to answer if you don't wanna, but why were you so upset when I… er… called you a… a freak?" Seeing the look on his face she quickly added, "I just don't want that to happen again, you know."

Considering her a moment, he said in a whisper "My relatives used to call me a freak all the time. I never knew my name was Harry before I went to school."

Tonks' eyes filled with tears. How could someone be so cruel to call a child freak all the fucking time? And that was exactly what she told him. Pulling him to a tight embrace, she murmured, "I'm so sorry Harry, if I knew I would kill myself before calling you that. I can't believe I'm such a horrible person!"

He felt bad for the older girl and despite feeling awkward he patted her back in an understanding gesture. "It's okay Tonks, you didn't know and you didn't mean it either." She released him and smiled at him. "Aren't you sweet dear! So about the face changing thingy, I'm a metamorphmagus." she announced.

"Er… come again?" he asked confused.

Resisting the urge to throw in a sexual innuendo, she explained him, "It means I can change my appearance at will. For example:" she changed her hair from bubble-gum pink to violet and Harry's eyes widened.

"You know Tonks, when I was younger I used to have a dream where someone changes their hair colour. Guess I knew someone like you before… you know… my parents died."

Tonks felt like her heart would burst any moment now. He remembered! "I don't think that is the case, Harry." He gave her a questioning look. She took a deep breath and said, "You just remember me."

Harry stood shocked for a moment and then laughed. He liked Tonks. She was sincere and funny… "You're kidding, right?" his laugh faltered when he noticed Tonks wasn't laughing. He stared at her for a moment and then whispered, "You… we've met before?" she nodded, tears in her eyes.

"When we went for a visit to Sirius, I met the Potters including you. I guess mum and dad already knew Lily and James."

"Wait, who's Sirius? And you… you knew my parents?" he asked, hungry for information. "How were they? I heard that I look like my dad with my mum's eyes, but I don't know anything else about them. I didn't even know their names until Hagrid came to give me my letter. Can you tell me about them please?"

Tonks' heart melted at the look young Harry gave her. She wanted to hug him so badly, but she didn't want to make him uncomfortable. She sat down with her legs crossed and started speaking.

"Sirius is my cousin and your parents' friend. He was your godfather too. When you were one, we went to his house and met you all there. I was only five so I don't remember all the details, but I remember that I absolutely loved Lily. And you were so little and so cute" he blushed at this, but Tonks continued on. "One time your parents left you with us for a while and you practically ordered me around to keep changing my hair. Not that I minded to have such a cute baby after me." She smirked and he blushed deeper, somewhat embarrassed at his younger self's behaviour. He tried to picture a younger Tonks patiently changing hair colours for him, but he could faintly remember his old dreams which were pretty much the same except that Tonks enjoyed it as much as he did. Grinning, he asked "What was my favorite then?" Instead of answering, she turned her hair flaming red. Curious, he asked her if she knew why he preferred that instead of more childish colours. She hesitated for a moment and then said in a low voice, "It was Lily's hair. Sometimes you would jump up and down in your cot if I didn't make that hair. Lily thought it showed how much you loved her. I think James was a bit jealous, but Lily always pointed out that your first word was 'dada' so they were even," she finished with a smile.

Harry was filled with emotions.

He was unbelievably happy because he knew his parents had loved him, and they loved each other, and they were a happy family. With the Dursleys he sometimes wondered if his parents loved him at all. Why would they leave their child to people who treated him like vermin if they really loved him? Why did they have to drive while drunk? Sometimes, when it was unbearable, he wished he had died with them. At least he would get to know them that way. But now he knew his parents really loved him like any other parents, even possibly more than other parents, and they died fighting a dark wizard. He didn't know if someone could be more proud of their parents than he was.

He was also incredibly sad. His loving parents, who had a full, lovely life ahead of them, were killed because they decided to do the right thing. He, Harry, had to grow up with the Dursleys and when he did well in school, instead of being hugged by his mother or praised by his father he was slapped hard for being better than Dudley and locked in a cupboard for the weekend. And what hurt the most was he would never even know what his parents looked like. Or maybe he could…

"Tonks, can I ask you a favour?" he asked very quietly, afraid that his voice would crack any moment. "Sure Harry, name it."

"You… you remember my mum and dad's faces? Can you show me please?" Nodding slightly, Tonks screwed up her face in concentration. A moment later, the face of Lily Potter looked at Harry with a loving smile.

"Mum…" the boy whispered in wonder. Unaware of what he was doing, he reached out a hand and touched her face. Suddenly he realized it was just Tonks and he retracted his hand quickly, muttering a hasty apology, but he was cut off by a crying Tonks who was now pulling him to a fierce hug and Harry did something he'd never done before: he hugged her back and cried on her shoulder.

Both of them cried for a long time. The girl for people she loved like family and the boy for the family he never had. Eventually, they calmed down and Harry felt embarrassed to have broken down in front of a stranger… but he couldn't consider Tonks to be a stranger. She showed him how his mother looked like and told him about his parents, she sure as hell wasn't a stranger to Harry. He realized that he didn't even know Tonks' last name. A bit ashamed at his self-centeredness, he asked, "Hey Tonks, what's your last name?"

"Tonks is my last name, I don't want to be called by my first name." she replied indignantly. He was taken aback by this.

"Why'd you not want to be called by your first name?" he asked curiously.

She sighed and replied, "Because I don't like it, it's a stupid name."

He knew it was rude to pry, but his curiosity was too high. "Okay, I won't call you by it, but can you at least tell me? I don't want to feel stupid if someone refers to you by your first name and I don't know who they are talking about." He threw in a puppy dog look to make sure she told him.

Muttering something like 'could do well in Slytherin' she took a dramatic breath as if preparing to announce her own death notice, and grumbled, "Nymphadora Tonks."

The expected laughter or snigger didn't come. She opened her eyes to see Harry looking at her curiously. He asked after a moment, "That's actually a nice name. What does it mean?"

Surprised and pleased with his positive reaction, she said, "It means _Gift from the Nymphs_."

"That's kind of fitting. I never felt so much happy when you showed me mum's face. I think you really are a gift, for me at least." He said, smiling. Tonks' had a grin that threatened to stretch her face permanently. She bent down and kissed his cheek and hugged him tightly.

"Thanks Harry, it really means a lot to me. But still, don't call me Nymphadora. Okay?" he nodded. He really liked Tonks a lot.

"Now, to business. Why were you roaming around the castle after midnight?" she asked, trying to look stern, but the smile at the corner of her mouth ruined the image. When Harry pointed out that she was out too, she huffed and glared at him. Sighing, he admitted that Draco Malfoy challenged him for a wizard's duel at midnight in the Trophy Room. Half expecting a mild scolding or something, Harry was pleasantly surprised to see Tonks looking proudly at him. "Way to go Harry! You're finally starting to break the curfew. I'm so proud of little Harrikins." She dramatically wiped away a fake tear.

Together they laughed for a while before Harry remembered the three-headed dog. They wondered what it was doing there, each guess wilder than the other. Finally, they agreed that it was getting late and both needed to get back to their beds. They had small conversations about Hogwarts, studies, teachers. Harry learnt that Tonks was particularly good at DefenseAgainst the Dark Arts, but they both agreed Quirrel was a worthless pile of crap (well, Tonks said that and Harry agreed that he was a bad teacher). When they reached a trick stair, Tonks didn't notice and was stuck. Harry helped her out for which Tonks kissed his cheeks and declared that Harry was her hero which made Harry blush and Tonks, busy laughing at him, tripped on a stair and now it was Harry's turn to laugh as Tonks just pouted.

When they reached at the base of the two staircases leading to the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff common rooms, Harry said, "You know Tonks, you shouldn't hate your first name like that, it's a part of who you are."

"But it's stupid" she said stubbornly.

"It's not stupid. But if it upsets you, how about we call you Dora for now?"

The words hit her like a speeding truck.

_A/N: I enjoyed writing this chapter. Perhaps you would be kind and let me know how you feel about it, what you liked and what you didn't? A review would be great! _


	5. A Memorable Christmas

_This chapter barely holds any importance, and I almost scrapped it, but then I thought you might want to know about Harry's first Christmas. Hope you enjoy. And Happy Olympics _

**5. A Memorable Christmas**

December was passing faster than they could imagine. Harry and Tonks had become noticeably closer to each other. Hestia and Edward were relieved to have the old playful Tonks back and both of them liked Harry. To them, Harry was a surprise. He didn't show any arrogance or even a bit of pride at being The Boy Who Lived. He was very polite, shy and somewhat reserved. He laughed with everyone else, listened to others' conversations and occasionally added a comment of his own, but he mostly kept to himself. Tonks tried to talk him about his relatives, but he managed to avoid that topic every time, and Tonks gave it a rest for the time being. _He'll talk when he's ready, _she thought.

Hermione and Neville liked Tonks too. Though disapproving of her frequent swearing, the bushy haired witch was very interested in a metamorphmagus. (I've read all about them, of course. But they are very rare, aren't they? And sometimes people are prejudiced against them too, which is absolute nonsense, blah, blah, blah…) Neville was awed by the older girl's 'rules are made to be broken' attitude. Harry considered her as a friend and a guide. She was the only link to his parents that he knew. Though they didn't talk much about Harry's parents after that nighttime chat, it was still very comforting to know that someone else missed them and had a better memory of them and was ready to share them with him.

Soon enough, it was Christmas holidays and one Monday morning, Professor McGonagall came to ask who was staying for the holidays. Harry immediately signed up. Given his way, he would have spent his summer holidays at Hogwarts. Hermione and Neville were both leaving. Tonks was staying though, he thought happily. Over the weeks, he had grown fond of the bubbly metamorphmagus. At least he could talk to her for a while when she wasn't with her friends.

On Christmas morning, Harry woke up quite early. He looked out of the window and was delighted to see that it was snowing. As far as he could see, the ground was beautifully white, the trees of the Forbidden Forest were topped with snow and Hagrid's hut looked like the perfect muggle Christmas cards. While Privet Drive had a sterile sort of beauty, it was nothing compared to the magical view in front of his window. He stared at the forest for a long time before his stomach grumbled. Not wanting to stay inside in this beautiful morning, he headed down. He knew that only Angelina Johnson and Katie Bell, his quidditch teammates, were remaining in the Gryffindor Tower and he was not surprised to find both of them huddled near the Christmas tree that graced a corner of the warm common room. Exchanging Christmas greetings with both of them he set to go to the Great hall, but Angelina called him back.

"Hey Harry, aren't you gonna open your presents?"

Harry looked at her with a surprised expression. "I got presents?"

They looked at him like he has gone barmy. "Of course you got presents. Everyone gets presents on Christmas." Katie said. He went towards the pile, slightly dizzy and immensely curious. Who on earth would send him presents?

It appeared that he had three packages. The first one was from Hagrid. He sent a box of chocolate frogs and his own home-made rock cakes. He smiled widely at that. He couldn't eat the cakes without breaking his teeth, but the gesture from his first magical friend made him very happy. The second parcel was some sort of silvery cloak and was mysteriously unsigned. He decided to open the last package before trying on the cloak. It was from Tonks. The package was hard and rectangular, probably a photo frame. Smiling, he opened it to find his suspicions correct. It wasn't, however, empty. It had a picture of four people. There was a caption scribbled under it.

_Three Potters and a Tonks._

Lily Potter was beaming at an infant Harry in her arms while James and Dora looked on with almost identical, loving smiles.

As if in a trance, Harry went out through the portrait of the Fat Lady, ignoring her annoyed 'Merry Christmas to you too.' When he reached the Great Hall, his eyes looked for the Hufflepuff table. There she was, sitting in the almost deserted table, chatting up with a couple of first years. When she noticed him coming her way, she smiled brightly and was about to say something but he cut her off with a surprisingly strong hug.

To say Tonks was shocked would be an understatement. Harry has always shied away from physical contacts and him initiate a hug was almost unthinkable. He pulled away soon and brandished the framed photo and said with a cracked voice, "Thanks a lot Dora. It's the best Christmas gift I ever had."

Tonks smiled brilliantly at him. "Don't mention. I wrote mum to send this picture, it's one of my favourites. Well, sit down. Or are you waiting for your friends?"

"No, the Gryffindor tower is almost empty. What about you?"

Tonks turned to the two first years she was talking to. "Here, I guess you guys know each other? Our dorms are almost empty too. Susan and Hannah are the only ones beside me staying back." He greeted Susan Bones and Hannah Abott, and they insisted that he had breakfast with them. He felt a bit uneasy sitting away from Gryffindor table, but when Katie and Angelina went and sat with their friends in the Ravenclaw table, he didn't worry about it anymore. He ate and listened to Susan, Hannah and Tonks's conversation, sometimes voicing his opinion between mouthfuls.

When breakfast was finished, Susan and Hannah left for their dorms and Tonks looked at him with a wide grin. There wasn't any particular reason to it, but Harry couldn't help but grin back. For the first time since he could remember, he was having a happy Christmas.

"So what's your plan for the day?" Tonks asked after she patted her stomach in satisfaction.

"Er… I don't know. I guess I wanted to visit Hagrid. I haven't gone to visit him after my first week here." He added a bit shamefully.

"Great! I'll come too. Haven't visited him for ages. Can you wait a bit while I grab my cloak from my room? No wait, come with me. I don't think you ever went inside Hufflepuff common room?" she asked, already tugging him towards the stairs.

"Er… no. I don't even know where it is." He admitted.

Tonks made a show to look heartbroken. "You don't know where your favourite girl lives? I think you don't love me anymore." She wiped fake tears and howled dramatically and running down the corridor.

Laughing at her antics, he followed her and they stopped near the portrait of a bald and plump looking wizard.

"Mistletoe."

The portrait swung open and revealed the Hufflepuff common room. It was almost identical to the Gryffindor common room, except for the colours. Everything in Gryffindor was scarlet and golden where Hufflepuff was all yellow with streaks of black. There was a warm looking sofa where Susan and Hannah were sitting. They waved at him when they saw him. Tonks smiled and said, "Just wait a minute and I'll be back in no time." She ran to the stairs leading to her dorm and stumbled comically in the way.

Seeing him standing alone, Susan called him over and they talked about classes and school in general. Soon Tonks was back and he bid goodbye to Susan and Hannah and walked out of the portrait. They walked in a comfortable silence until they reached the huge door leading out to the grounds.

"How'd you make friends with Hagrid?" she asked him curiously. He told her all about his eleventh birthday. The hut in the sea, Leaky Cauldron, his introduction to the wizarding world and Hedwig. Tonks never saw Hedwig so she had no idea how she looked, but she smiled at Hagrid's generosity. Just like the big ol' man to buy Harry a gift that he would love and find useful. She in turn told him about how she became friends with Hagrid. In her first year, when Hestia and Edward were just classmates, she used to roam around the grounds all alone. Hagrid noticed her and one day he invited her to his hut and they hit it off immediately. Sometimes when she got upset, she would come down to visit Hagrid and the big man would make her a large mug of tea and she would just sit there and talk with him for hours, it always made her feel better.

When they reached the little cabin, Tonks didn't bother to knock. Instead, she yelled, "HAGRID, OPEN THE DOOR!" Fang's bark was booming and after a moment, Hagrid's great bearded face appeared.

"Tonks! And Harry too! Thought yer forgo' where me lived. C'mon in."

After a short exchange of "Merry Christmas" Hagrid put a huge cauldron full of water above the fire which was cackling merrily in the fireplace, and sat down on his bed. Harry noticed the poor bed sinking down quite a few inches.

"I gotta admit I'm surprised to see yer two together. Howd'ya know each other?" he asked curiously. Tonks looked at Harry, unsure how much he wanted to share. Harry, feeling a bit mischievous, replied, "Oh I just saved her from a mountain troll and now she tags along everywhere I go."

Tonks's jaw dropped in shock but when she realized he was just taking the piss, she jumped to tickle him. "Why you little bugger, I'll show you tagging!"

Unfortunately for her, Harry wasn't ticklish.

"Not fair!" she pouted, "He has to be ticklish _somewhere!_" when he continued to grin at her, her frown dissolved and she burst out in laughter. Laughing was contagious. So soon Harry and Hagrid joined in the laughter.

They all chatted and teased each other for a while, enjoying the festive mood. Hagrid revealed a few embarrassing secrets of Tonks, which she vehemently claimed were untrue. They swapped tales of Harry's childhood, some of which made him blush madly.

It was almost lunch when Tonks brought up something that changed Hagrid's happy expression for the first time.

"Hey Hagrid, do you know what's a three-headed dog doing in the castle?" she asked lightly.

Hagrid suddenly looked worried. "How d'ya know 'bout Fluffy?" he blurted out.

"You know it's name?" Harry exclaimed.

"That thing has a name?" Tonks asked disbelievingly.

Hagrid looked annoyed with himself. "Course I know 'is name. I gave 'im to professor Dumbledore."

The pair pondered in this new information. Why did professor Dumbledore need a three-headed dog in the first place? Unless it was-

"It's guarding something?" Harry asked thoughtfully. Tonks looked at him in surprise and a bit of admiration. "Of course! What else would that monster do inside a castle full of students. What's it guarding then?"

Hagrid was torn between protesting about Fluffy being a monster and stopping them before they figured out too much. He went for the latter. "Now look, yer lot don' go lookin' for trouble. It's not my business so I'm not gonna tell nothin'. Its professor Dumbledore and Nicholas Flamel's business, so-"

"Aha! So there's someone called Nicholas Flamel involved here." Harry said happily.

Hagrid was furious with himself.

They racked their brain for a while, but they couldn't remember where they heard the name. Hagrid was not opening his mouth in the fear of giving away more information than he already had. It was one in the afternoon when they finally abandoned their 'Flamel Hunt' and said goodbye to Hagrid. He warned them not to waste their time on Flamel. They just laughed and waved at him.

After a delicious lunch, Harry invited the three Hufflepuffs to the Gryffindor tower. The first years were a bit nervous, but Tonks almost skipped on her way. She claimed that it was her first time in the Lion's den. Apparently, she visited the Ravenclaw tower in her fourth year and never had the urge to go down to the dungeons to the Slytherin common room. The Fat Lady didn't look happy at Hufflepuffs getting to know the password ('Fortuna Major') but she didn't say anything. The common room itself was empty and Harry and Tonks plopped down in the comfortable squashy armchairs near the fire. Susan and Hannah sat down carefully on a sofa. Tonks let out an exaggerated sigh. "Oh you lot look like you're setting your arses on fire. Just chill, ladies!"

The pair relaxed a bit and Harry added, "Make yourselves at home, guys. It's not everyday that you get a seat near the fire in the Gryffindor common room." They smiled and sat more comfortably after that.

After a few hours of exploding snap, chatting about nothing in particular and enjoying the 'Funny Face and Imitation of Various Professors and Prefects Show' by Tonks, they decided to go out to the grounds. Still covered in snow, it provided an excellent opportunity for a nice snowball fight. Harry teamed up with Susan, as Tonks was left with Hannah. Tonks was horrible in dodging, but her aim was dangerous. Susan and Hannah were pretty even in both but Harry's seeker reflexes made it almost impossible to hit him, though his throws weren't necessarily that stellar. When it was around six, the flushed and soaked youngsters were heading back to the castle, still bickering over the snow fight.

"That was cheating Tonks! You weren't supposed to do shield charms." Susan exclaimed, her red hair plastered to her face. Tonks winked at her. "Oh loosen up, darling. All is fair in love and war."

Susan harrumphed and Harry patted her head in consolation. He could see why she was complaining. Knowing that it was pointless to keep throwing at Harry, both Tonks and Hannah targeted Susan only, and though she and Harry hit their opponents enough to make it a draw, she was totally drenched from the melting snow.

When they reached the landing where their paths divided, they decided to meet at dinner and went for their respective dorms. When he lied down in his four-poster bed, Harry smiled. He never had this fun in his whole term at Hogwarts, and the day wasn't over yet. He suddenly remembered the strange cloak he received as a gift. Picking it up, he examined it closely. It was translucent and almost had a fluid property. Not knowing what else to do, he put it on and stood in front of a mirror. He almost jumped out of his skin when he saw the reflection. He was looking at the wall behind him, moonlight illuminating it for him. His body was nowhere to be seen. He opened the cloak hastily and was glad to see that his body has returned beneath his head. Out of the corner of his eyes, he noticed a note falling. Snatching it before it reached the ground, he read it. The handwriting was unfamiliar and loopy.

_Your father left this in my possession before he died. It is time you had it back. Use it well._

"Use it well? What the hell is it in the first place?"

After dinner, he showed it to Tonks. (He didn't feel comfortable to show it to Susan and Hannah yet)

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Tonks whispered in an awed voice, eyes bulging at the sight of the cloak.

"Language, Nymphadora!" harry admonished. She threw a stink eye at him but returned to try on the cloak herself. Her body disappeared from view and she exclaimed, "This is a bloody invisibility cloak Harry! Oh I'm _so_ jealous of you." she moaned.

"What do you do with an invisibility cloak then?" he asked impatiently, not getting the reason for her over-enthusiasm. Tonks looked at him like he had sprouted a second head.

"Are you daft, Harry? When you are wearing this, no one can see you. You can do almost anything under it and no one will ever catch you!" she almost shouted in excitement.

Then it clicked in his head. Under the cloak, the world was free to him. As long as he didn't bump to someone or make a noise, he could go anywhere. His face split into a grin.

"Hey Dora, how do you feel about a trip to the forest?" he asked.

Her eyes shone like a dagger in the sunlight.

_A/N: I want to express my gratitude to all my readers for reviewing, alerting, favouriting and simply for reading this story. I should probably mention that I have run out of the chapters I already finished writing and now I'm writing as I go. So you won't have updates as fast as you used to. But I promise to try and update as soon as possible. Reviews will ensure fast updates ;)_


	6. Back To The Dursleys

**6. Back To The Dursleys**

The Hogwarts Express was passing through the green countryside. It was beautiful, yet monotonous. Of course, when you get almost killed by your parents' murderer, aided by your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, or encounter with a three-headed dog, lethal plants, a mountain troll, a horde of centaurs, or maybe export baby dragons and come across a stone that can bring you infinite gold and life, pretty much everything seems monotonous. That was the case with Harry Potter.

Of course, Tonks was almost always with him, except for the confrontation with Quirrell and Voldemort. Hermione was there sometimes (like handing Norbert to a couple of dragon handlers Hagrid knew, one of them being the brother of the Weasleys) but she was more often so stuck up with 'maintaining the school rules' and trying to set up study schedules for Harry and Neville, that Harry stopped trying to bring her to any of their adventures. Surprisingly, Neville volunteered to come with Harry and Tonks through Fluffy's trapdoor, and was of immense help when he almost singlehandedly won them the chess match that guarded the stone. Tonks wanted to call Susan and Hannah too, but Harry had insisted that there was little time to spare and tracking down the two girls could take up a lot of their time. Tonks became rather attached to the two girls as Edward and Hestia started going out right after Christmas. They didn't abandon Tonks, but as they spent more time around each other, Tonks tried to give them some space and privacy and spent more time with Harry or Susan and Hannah and the girls accompanied them to some adventures, too.

"Whatchya thinking, Harry?"

He shook out of his musings and looked around the compartment. Tonks was lying down with her head on his lap and her feet in front of Susan, who was dozing off. Hermione, Neville and Hannah were sitting on the opposite end, where Hannah was asleep with her head on Neville's shoulder who looked a bit uncomfortable, but not unhappy. Hermione was reading a book near the window, seemingly oblivious of the world around her. Harry was sitting in a compartment full of people who were his friends.

"Just thinking about the year, you know. Looks like I don't do normal." he added with a grin. Tonks chuckled.

"You definitely don't do normal. To think of a Hogwarts without you-" she sighed dramatically.

"Painfully boring, I'm sure" he laughed.

She observed him carefully. He was laughing alright. But there was something hidden in his eyes. He was tensed. Or worried. Or both.

"You worried about the Dursleys?" she asked softly. He gave her a startled look. Was he that transparent? Sighing, he nodded. "A bit."

Tonks gave her a wide smile. "Don't worry, mum will talk with them. They won't give you a hard time. And I'll see you within three weeks."

Before the term ended, Andromeda Tonks came to Dumbledore to let him know that Harry will be spending his summers with them from now on. Unfortunately, the old man had other plans. He explained the blood wards that protected Harry in Privet Drive and said that he had to stay at least three weeks for the wards to be fully charged for a year. Andromeda didn't give up without a fight, but her arguments fell to deaf ears. Harry was a bit upset that he had to return to the Dursleys, but he was immensely grateful to Mrs. Tonks for her invitation and her concern for him. When he went to thank her, however, she just waved a hand and said, "Don't mention dear, I always felt guilty that we couldn't take you in instead of those muggles, but Dumbledore wouldn't even tell me where you lived. It's the least I could do for Lily and James." She then left, reminding him that she would have a talk with his relatives at platform nine and three-quarters.

"I know. And I'm afraid that they might insult Mrs. Tonks or something." He said in a concerned voice. Tonks laughed it off. "Believe me, I actually want them to insult mum. Ooh it'll be fun to watch." She said almost longingly. Harry stared at her. Insanity was one of her most notable characteristics.

Malfoy decided to pay a visit after a while. He strutted in with Crabbe and Goyle following behind.

"Look it's Potty and his sidekicks." he drawled. Tonks looked up and asked no one in particular, "Who invited these gaylords here?"

Draco turned red and shouted, "No one asked your opinion you cheap-"

WHAM!

Everyone stared at Susan. The redhead had stood up, punched Malfoy and then went back to her seat all within four seconds.

"How dare you-"

WHAM!

This time it was Harry. He got up and kicked the door shut right in Draco's face, possibly breaking the ponce's nose.

They looked at each other and burst into laughter. Even Hermione, who they feared would go on about reporting to a prefect than taking matters in their own hands, joined in the laughter. Looked like she was finally loosening up a bit.

They spent the rest of the journey chatting up and making plans for the summer.

"Harry will be staying at my place after I kidnap him from the muggles." Tonks announced.

"Can you guys spend a week at my place? Please?" Susan pleaded. Hannah agreed instantly. Tonks and Harry would have to confirm with Mrs. Tonks, but the metamorphmagus was certain that they would be able to make it.

"I don't think gran won't let me come. You guys enjoy." Neville said gloomily. Hannah looked at him sympathetically.

"What 'bout you Herm?" Tonks asked. Hermione frowned.

"Don't call me that, I like my name as it is." Tonks sighed wistfully, but Hermione continued in a lower voice, "I'm going to France with mum and dad in a vacation. I don't think I can come, sorry." She looked apologetic.

"Oh no problem, it'll be Hannah, Harry, Tonks and me then. We'll have so much fun!" Susan squealed in anticipation. Harry laughed at her enthusiasm. Hannah and Tonks shook their heads fondly.

Not after long, the train reached platform nine and three-quarters. Everyone hurried down to meet their family, and the air was thick with shouts of delight from various students or their family. Harry found himself in front of Ted and Andromeda Tonks. Ted Tonks was a pleasant-looking man with a balding head, round belly and a moustache. He was being hugged by Dora, whose hair was a soft red. He turned to look at Mrs. Tonks, who was looking back at him with a kind smile. "Hello Harry dear. Had an interesting year?"

Despite everything, he had to smile at that question. "You can say again." Andromeda laughed at this. She already knew about his adventures in school, and secretly thought James would be so proud of him…

"Harry?" a voice called.

It was Susan. Harry felt a great wave of affection for the girl. She had been there for him, whenever he needed her. She had been a little angry at him for not taking her down to save the stone, but she understood his reason and didn't push him. She was just there and Harry was immensely grateful to her for it. Susan was just the sister he never had.

"Hey Susan." He smiled at her. She ran to him and threw her arms around him. Harry hugged her back tightly.

"Take care Sue." He whispered.

"You too, Harry."

They released their holds and smiled at each other. Then Susan grabbed Harry's arm to pull him towards a couple who looked like Susan's parents. They were both smiling at the pair.

"Mum, dad, this is Harry Potter. Harry, these are my parents and that little devil over there is my younger brother Sam." A little boy of seven or eight, whom Harry didn't notice before, looked at him curiously.

"Nice to meet you Mr. Bones, Mrs. Bones. Hello Sam." He said politely.

"You too dear. Suzy writes a lot about you." Mrs. Bones said while Mr. Bones shook Harry's hand. Susan looked unabashed.

"Mum I invited Harry and some friends at our place later this summer." She informed her mother. Her father, however, asked a question that confused Harry.

"Our place? Which place are you talking about darling?"

_They don't have a place or what?_ Harry thought and to his surprise, Susan seemed thinking hard._ What was the matter? Do they have a problem-_

"The summer one." Susan finally announced. Harry had no clue what she was talking about. _The summer what, exactly?_

Seeing his confused expression, Mrs. Bones explained to him. "We have a manor and a summer-house. Seems like you will be visiting the summer-house, but I hope Suzy will bring you to the manor some time."

After that, Susan introduced Hannah and Tonks to her parents and after a while Harry realized that his uncle and aunt must've been waiting for him outside the barrier. He reminded Tonks of this and after a quick goodbye with Hermione and Neville, Harry was steered out of the platform to the muggle world by Tonks, her parents following behind. Immediately, his uncle noticed him and was growling, "You are late boy! I have half a mind to leave you-"

"Shut up and listen Dursley." Andromeda Tonks stepped in front. Dora looked positively giddy.

"And who the ruddy- AAARRRGGHH!" Vernon Dursley yelped as he looked at the index finger of his right hand, only to find a shrimp in its place. Harry was worried that his uncle's voice might attract attention to them, but everyone mysteriously ignored the group.

"I demand you to fix th- AAAAARRRGH!" He was cut off again as his middle finger turned to a tiny snake that looked around in a bored fashion.

"I suggest you listen to the wife. She can get nasty, trust me." Ted Tonks offered the horrified man. Aunt Petunia looked like she was about to faint.

"Okay, so now I have your attention, I advise you to keep quiet and listen to me very carefully." Andromeda paused for a second. When Vernon showed no sign of interrupting immediately, she continued, "This is about Harry. From what I understand, you have not treated him nicely. If it wasn't for Harry's own protection, believe me, you lot would just wish you were never born. Now, I'm not here to confront you about the past. I'll deal with it later. I'm here to say that you will not mistreat Harry in any way while he is staying with you. Is that clear?"

Vernon spluttered, "Excuse me, but I fail to see how it is any of your business how I treat this ungrateful little- AAAAARRRGGHHH!" he yelled as his ring finger sprouted wings and turned to a dragonfly.

Petunia fainted.

Andromeda continued as if nothing has happened.

"As I was saying, you will not mistreat Harry in any possible way. And don't think for a moment that you will get away with it. I'll be coming to take him after three weeks. If I hear a word from him against you, these fingers will seem cheap parlor tricks."

"Why didn't you take that brat in if you care so much?" Petunia, who was revived by Ted, asked shrilly. Andromeda sighed.

"Trust me, I wanted to and I would too if I had an idea where you lived. Dumbledore wouldn't tell me and insist it was for the greater sodding good. But how could you do this to Lily? She loved you till the day she died. She often told me how she wished you would put your prejudices aside and finally talk to her. I always told her you weren't worth it. And I was right. You don't deserve to be related to someone as good as Lily." She finished with undisguised disgust.

"Lily was a freak!" Petunia shrieked. "She was a freak who could turn frogstools into pincushions and she and her loser husband got what was coming-"

"SHUT UP!"

Everyone turned to stare at Harry. He radiated so much fury that even Andromeda backed away a bit.

"Don't talk about my parents like that ever again." He told, breathing heavily.

There was a moment's silence and then Vernon roared, "How dare you nasty little AAAAAGGGHHH!"

His pinky finger was now transfigured to a nasty caterpillar.

Andromeda looked at her watch and said, "I don't have all day, so I'm saying it again, while he is there, you people will not mistreat Harry in any physical or mental way. And he better gain some pounds when I come to pick him up. And if you decide to be brave and ignore my warnings, just send your owl with a word, Harry. Did I make myself painfully clear?"

"Quite painful, dear." Ted murmured. Tonks snickered.

"Hush, you. I'll be seeing you in three weeks then. For your sake, I hope it's not sooner." With that, she waved her wand and everything seemed noisier. Harry realized she must have put on some sort of privacy charm.

"What about my hand?" Vernon asked in a low but furious voice, pointing at his fingers, four of which were now transfigured.

"It will serve as a reminder for a while. Don't worry. It'll be gone before tomorrow morning. At least I think so." She added with a smirk.

Tonks came up to hug Harry tightly. "Don't let them take you down. Just send Hedwig if they give you trouble." She said as they broke apart. Harry smiled and nodded.

"Boy I'm waiting!" Vernon barked. Not wanting to further test his luck, Harry waved at the three Tonks and got in the car. When he turned back to look at them from the car, they were gone. He sighed quietly. He hoped this wouldn't blow up in his face.

The trip was unnaturally quiet. If Vernon had any problems driving with four different creatures in place of his fingers, he didn't voice them. Aunt Petunia sat with a stony face and didn't show any signs of movement, and if it weren't for her eyes glancing at Harry through the mirror, he would've thought she was cursed by Andromeda.

When they reached number four, Privet Drive, Harry had a feeling that something was going to be wrong, and he wasn't disappointed.

"Now you listen to me boy." Vernon grabbed Harry's shirt when they were out of sight from the neighborhood. "You are going to lock that ruddy owl in the cupboard and you are going to say we treated you fine to that… that woman when she comes, if you want to be alive when she comes. Or else-"

"Or else what?"

Vernon's head turned so quickly that it creaked audibly. Andromeda Tonks was leaning on a wall, twirling her wand in her fingers.

"You see, I thought you might be having second thoughts about our agreement. You would require another reminder, then?"

With a wave of her wand, Uncle Vernon's thumb became a slug.

Petunia fainted again.

_A/N: Did you like it? Please review!_

_mcwebe0: since I can't PM you, I'm answering here. Hermione is a Gryffindors and Tonks usually pulls pranks and roam around the castle after curfew, alone, so they aren't necessarily TUF's all the time. But you've to understand that both of them had a terrible day in Halloween, so when they saw the troll, their brain went to sleep mode.  
_


	7. Worried

**7. Worried**

Harry sat on his bed, feeling dejected. Two weeks have passed after he came back to Privet Drive, but there wasn't any word from his friends. He expected Tonks and Susan to write to him, but they didn't. After one week, he wrote to them but they didn't bother to reply. An irate Hedwig came back without a reply and making a huge racket, but he was too miserable to care. He wondered if Mrs. Tonks would indeed come to get him after one week. He didn't want to imagine what the Dursleys would do if she didn't show up.

The Dursleys weren't tormenting him anymore. They were ignoring him, which was far better than anything else, but after a year of magic, adventure and being close to friends, staying in his room was driving him insane. Dudley avoided him like plague. He was really looking forward to drop subtle hints about setting his room on fire or turning him to a pig, but he failed to show his face to Harry for more than three seconds in one go. Harry suspected Petunia warned him to stay away from Harry or maybe he saw what happened to his father's hand and just took the hint. Who knew?

He was staring at the bushes, wallowing in his own misery, when he noticed that it was staring back!

"Who is it? Show yourself!" he said with more courage than he felt.

"It is Dobby sir, Dobby the house elf." A creature appeared in front of him and introduced itself.

After ten minutes, a disbelieving and annoyed Harry was still arguing with Dobby.

"I don't care what you do Dobby, I will go back to Hogwarts, and you better give my letters back. I really hate people who try to stand between my friends and me." He said heatedly. The elf looked miserable.

"Dobby has no other choice Harry Potter sir. Dobby must do this for Harry Potter's own safety. Sir must not go back to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." With that, Dobby clicked his fingers and to his horror, his trunk was on fire.

"Dobby is sorry, Harry Potter sir, but this was for Harry Potter's own good."

How he anticipated Dobby's next move or how he timed his own move impeccably, he didn't know, but with a skill that would make any seeker jealous, he snatched the letters out of Dobby's hand just as the elf clicked his own fingers and disappeared with a loud CRACK!

He didn't have time to glance at the letters or his burning trunk before he heard a POP sound behind him.

Mrs. Tonks was standing behind him and before he could say anything, she waved her hand and put out the fire. Then she turned towards Harry and asked in a slightly irritated voice, "What's going on here?"

Before Harry could explain anything, a barn owl came zooming in and dropped an official letter in Harry's lap. He opened the seal, which said 'MoM' and took out the letter. It gave him warning about using underage magic and said that doing it again would throw him out of Hogwarts. He looked pathetically at the woman who was still waiting for an explanation. Sighing, he started his story.

After ten minutes, Andromeda Tonks was furious. She had been worried sick about the boy for two weeks. Not just he had ignored Dora's letters, he didn't reply to his other friends' letters as well. She knew this because Susan Bones and Hermione Granger have written to Dora, expressing their concerns about Harry. She wanted to come and check on Harry many times, but Ted had stopped her. "Maybe he's busy or going through shock after such an adventurous year." He would say. But after two weeks, she couldn't stand it anymore. When she appeared in his room and saw him holding a bunch of letters, she felt annoyed. He had the letters and didn't even open them? And why on earth did he set his own trunk on fire? Was he touched in head? But after hearing the explanation, she felt furious at the filthy house elf. She was sure that it was sent by someone to scare away Harry or get him out of their way. Maybe it was a rival in the school, trying to get one over him. Taking a deep breath, she reigned in her temper and decided what to do. First she would deal with the ministry. She had a friend who could check the boy's wand and clear his name.

She apparated back home to find her daughter waiting for her anxiously. As soon as she saw her mother, she asked her, "What happened to him? Is he alright?"

Grabbing a quill and parchment, she scribbled a letter and sent it with the family owl before answering. "Yes, he is fine. It's a long story and I have to run before he is in more trouble. I'll explain as soon as I come home." With that, she disapparated with a POP.

Tonks sighed. For the last few days, she had been worried about Harry. She sent a letter just the day after they came home. Their owl Walter returned without a reply, though it looked irritated. She told herself that maybe Harry was busy and would reply later. After a week, she began to worry. Was it possible that Walter didn't deliver the letter properly? She didn't want to think that something bad might have happened to Harry. But unfortunately, Harry had a habit of attracting trouble to himself. When she received Susan and Hermione's letter, asking about Harry's lack of response, she became restless. What the fuck happened to him?

Now, her mother came back from his place and said that he was alright, but it still didn't calm her nerves. _Damn Harry Potter! That boy is going to be the death of me._

While she was waiting for her mother, she noticed a white speck in the sky. Was it…

"Hedwig?" she shouted and immediately jumped on her feet. The snowy owl landed on her extended hands and she scratched her feathers where she assumed it would be comfortable. Hedwig hooted happily at the attention she was receiving. _Harry has spoiled her._ She thought fondly as she opened the letter.

_Dear Dora,_

_How are you? Did you miss me? I know I missed you a lot. You are probably wondering why I am replying now. Thing is I got all the letters just an hour ago. Ask Mrs. Tonks, she will explain. Meanwhile, what have you been doing? The Dursleys are treating me fine, your mum's threat worked! Not that I'm surprised. Did you get your OWLs result? Reading your second letter, I guess you were worried about me. I'm really sorry. If I could, I would have replied as soon as I received the letter. I even sent one in the third day, but as I understand, it didn't reach you. It wasn't Hedwig's fault, just ask Mrs. Tonks. When I sent my letter and didn't get a reply, I became upset and wondered why weren't you replying. I know I was being stupid. How can my favourite girl ignore my letters? I'm looking forward to next week when I can get out of this place and see you again. Hope you are well._

_Yours,_

_Harry._

A smile tugged on the corner of her lips. At least he was okay. She was a bit mad at him, though. Why did she have to wait for her mother to know what happened to Harry? Pouting a bit, she grabbed a quill and parchment and started to write her reply.

_Harry,_

_I missed you like hell, sweetheart. And yes, I was worried about you, a lot. When Herm and Sue said they didn't get a reply either, I told mum. She pretended to be cool and calm but I know she was worried sick about you. Though I did kinda bit her head off, asking about you several times a day and what not. _

_No, my OWLs results aren't out yet. Remind me to spank you for reminding me of that blasted OWLs result again. Hestia has been here for a day, we had some nice girl time together but it was fun getting her to talk about Edward. Can you believe that they actually went to Madam Puddifoot's and afterwards they… okay, I'm not going to torture you by giving away the details of their activities, I have a feeling you won't appreciate it properly. Anyhow, mum's here so I'll go and pester her until she tells me everything. Take care, babe._

_With love,_

_N. Tonks _

* * *

Susan Bones was sitting under 'her tree'. She used to come here all the time since she could remember. Sometimes she just sat there, sometimes she fell asleep here and sometimes she would sing to herself. It was her own little world. No one bothered her when she was here.

Currently, she was pondering over a certain raven haired boy. One might think she had a crush on the boy, but that was not the case. Harry was more like a brother than anything else and she was sure Harry felt the same way about her. However, Harry wasn't answering his mail and that had her worried. At first she thought, with a pang of sadness, that maybe Harry hasn't opened her letter yet, maybe he is busy. But after ten days has passed without a response, she wrote to Tonks. Harry was more likely to keep up correspondence with the older girl. When Tonks said that her mail wasn't answered either, she was really worried. She didn't know much about Harry's home life, but what she gathered from his second-hand clothes and malnourished physique, it couldn't be very pleasant.

As she was deep in thoughts, our favourite snowy owl landed beside the red headed girl. Seeing no response from his owner's human friend, she let out an impatient hoot. Harry had work for her. She couldn't afford to wait all day.

Susan jumped in surprise. She turned to glare at the offending creature, but her frown dissolved quickly as she saw the beautiful white owl looking back at her.

"Aren't you a beautiful bird! I envy the person who owns you. You have a letter for me? From whom is it?"

Quite mollified at being praised, Hedwig stuck out her leg ad allowed Susan to untie the letter. As soon as she got rid of the letter, she flew off before the girl could even see who the letter was from. Carefully, she took out the letter from the envelope and looked at the name.

Harry.

A wave of relief washed over her. Without wasting any more time, she started reading.

_Dear Sue,_

_How are you? First of all, I'm sorry. I know you were worried about me (Tonks told me about your letter) and I'm so sorry about that. But I promise it wasn't my fault. From what I have learnt a few hours back, a house elf has been intercepting my letters. I know it sounds crazy, but then again, I should probably get accustomed to crazy stuff as I clearly don't do normal._

_As I was saying, I got all your letters a few hours back and let me tell you I had to literally snatch them out of a disappearing house elf's hand. I admit, I was quite disappointed when I didn't get a letter from anyone, but I should've known better than to think you have forgotten me. Once again, I'm sorry. To answer your questions, my summer was okay. My relatives have been ignoring me, which is the nicest thing they have done in a while. You might already know that my relatives aren't the nicest people alive and maybe you are wondering why they are being nice now. Well, it was mainly because Mrs. Tonks scared them out of their wits. (That isn't saying too much considering that my relatives are quite lacking in wit, kind of anti-Ravenclaw, really) I'll tell you the details when I meet you again. My owl Hedwig must have disappeared as soon as she delivered the letter. Don't get offended by it. I asked her not to wait because I have to send a detailed update to Hermione about my progresses in my homework. I swear that girl would marry a bookshelf if she had her way. Anyways, I'll stop now. Hope to see you soon. Send my best to Sam._

_Yours,_

_Harry_

Smiling, Susan went back to the manor, feeling lighter than she felt all summer. Harry was alright and he was even joking. She poked an unsuspecting Sam on her way, causing him to squeal in surprise. She didn't bother to look back. She had a letter to write.

Meanwhile, at Number Four, Privet Drive, Albus Dumbledore was processing the information provided by Harry Potter and a slightly angry Andromeda Tonks. Truth be told, he was a bit scared of the woman. He had seen the Black sisters in school and if his information was correct, Andromeda was the scariest of the three. She didn't just show it often. He knew she was still mad at him for not being able to take Harry in and he hoped this mess wouldn't cause her to lose her temper. Bellatrix was a formidable opponent. He didn't want to evaluate an angry Andromeda's dueling skills.

"I admit I don't know any house elf called Dobby. Of course that doesn't say much as I hardly had the privilege to know much more house elves except from those appointed at Hogwarts. I assure you I have negated all the magic performed by our friend Dobby. Your mail can continue as usual."

Andromeda was not impressed. "I thought you said Harry was protected while he is here?" she asked coldly and was pleased to see the old man losing the twinkle from his eyes. He sighed before answering.

"I was foolish. The wards in this place are designed to block access to anyone with a Dark Mark. I never thought about someone using a house elf to spy on Harry."

"Spying? You are worried about spying? That house elf could've been ordered to kidnap him and seeing that it got inside his room, it wasn't bloody difficult to do. Was it?" she was yelling now. Dumbledore flinched.

"Now Andromeda, I admit it was extremely foolish of me to have left loopholes in my protection, but now it is fixed. No one with sinister intentions will be able to enter the wards until Harry is of age."

"But why can't you set up those wards at my place? The people who live here have more sinister intentions than a lot of Death Eaters out there."

Dumbledore tried to calm the angry witch before him. "I have already explained this, Andromeda. Lily's sacrifice means he will be safe as long as he is with her blood relatives, and Petunia was her sole remaining blood relative. And I'm sure she feels some affection for the boy despite what you are implying-"

* * *

Outside the privacy charm, Harry could only stare in shock as he witnessed Andromeda Tonks waved her wand at Dumbledore faster than he thought was possible and the old Headmaster stood in shock.

In place of his long silvery beard, a bunch of thin, greenish worms were hanging from his jaw.

_A/N: Badass Andromeda! Do you like her? I know I do. Please review to let me know what you think.  
_

_Fulgrim: thanks for the help. I'm not a Brit nor American, so sometimes I tend to mix up different cultures.  
_


	8. A Better Summer

**8. A Better Summer  
**

Side-along apparition is an unpleasant business. It leaves the helped person feeling nauseous and weak on the feet. Harry was experiencing those effects. He knew he preferred flying over this crap._ Where did good old train rides go? _He thought sadly.

A perfectly healthy looking Mrs. Tonks was looking at him with concern. Not wanting to show weakness, he mouthed "I'm fine" at her. She didn't look convinced, but she called out, "He's here, Dora."

After a second, a squeal of "Harryyyyyyyyy" came from somewhere. Just as he turned around, a purple missile shot at him and took him down.

He waited for the crash, but it never came. Instead, his face was covered by a rather firm breast. Blushing red like a tomato, he tried to throw the purple haired girl off him, but to her credit, she untangled herself from him pretty quickly and looked at him with an ear to ear grin, totally unabashed about the fact that she had tackled him to the ground not more than three seconds ago. Speaking of the ground-

He looked around to see an amused looking Mrs. Tonks holding out her wand at the spot where they fell. Harry guessed she put some sort of cushioning charm. "Er… thanks Mrs. Tonks."

"I'm used to it dear. Dora tends to welcome people in that fashion. And call me Andromeda, or Andi, if you will." She said, cancelling the charm and walking away from the duo. "And make yourself at home. If you're hungry, the fridge is stocked. Dora will show you around the place. Lunch should be ready within an hour."

Tonks steered Harry by the shoulders to 'show him around'. The house was nothing too fancy, it was somewhat similar the Dursleys' place. However, the sterile and unwelcome air of the Dursleys' was missing here. This place had feeling of home. It was warm, comfortably messy and most importantly, it was magical. Harry has never been to a magical home before. Though judging by the amount of muggle appliances, he gathered it wasn't a full magical house. In the sink, a pan was washing itself, an electric oven was sitting idly. Before he could notice anything more, Tonks was pushing him up the stairs and eventually into a room.

"This is my room." She announced proudly. It was way messier than the rest of the house. Clothes were strewn all over the room. Books piled on a corner, a computer on a table beside a closet and a pile of cassettes and a small stereo player on her dressing table. The walls were covered by posters of Holyhead Harpies, The Weird Sisters, The Beatles, Rambo and a few pictures of her younger self. Harry noticed that she seemed to be changing hair colours in some of the pictures. He looked back at Tonks, who was picking up undergarments from the floor. She threw them in a basket near the door where they disappeared instantly. Noticing Harry's curious look, she explained, "Those are for washing. I'm too lazy to carry them down and my dirty clothes used to pile up until I had nothing to wear, so mum set this up on my tenth birthday."

"How come you have so much muggle stuff in your home? I thought wizards don't use muggle electronics?" Harry asked her. Gathering the rest of her clothes to make a ball, she answered, "My Dad's a muggleborn and he thinks some things are better done in the muggle way. Mum didn't believe him at first, but now she can't live without her oven or the refrigerator. And she likes to keep some of her work things in my computer. Of course I have to hide the porn videos, but I don't think she could find it anyway." She finished, putting the huge ball of clothes inside her closet.

"P…porn? Like people doing… erm… you know… _that_?" he asked, torn between shock and embarrassment.

"Oh stop being such a baby. It's not like you haven't taken a peek at my chest." She said with a wink.

He turned red in embarrassment and outrage. Of course he did no such thing! But now he came to think about it-

"Chill mate, you are so easy to mess up with!" she laughed at his expression, causing him to scowl at her.

"Hey, did you know that Neville has a crush on you?"

"Nice try, sweet arse. It takes loads of practice to fool me."

He felt annoyed that she saw through his bluff so easily, but she continued. "I know for a fact Neville is crushing over Hannah."

This information surprised him. "How do you know it?" he asked, a bit suspiciously. She rolled her eyes.

"Oh please! You have to be blind to miss that cute looks they send each others' way when the other one isn't watching. Ah, to be that young again." She said with an exaggerated sigh. He pondered over the news. Of course he didn't noticed the so called 'cute looks', but he remembered Neville sitting next to Hannah in herbology and they even sat together in the Hogwarts Express. He wondered how Tonks noticed such details when she appeared to be oblivious of everything else. It might have something to do with her metamorphing abilities. That led to something Harry was wondering for a while.

"Hey Dora, can I ask you something?" She nodded. "I've noticed that every time I see you, you change some small details of yourself. Like some days you are shorter than others, sometimes you have chubbier cheeks, and sometime you change your entire facial structure."

"Yeah, I tend to play with myself every now and then." She said with a wink. Ignoring the double meaning behind her words, he pressed on, "So what do you actually look like, Dora?"

She eyed him carefully, as if deciding if he was trustworthy to keep a secret. Then suddenly her face changed. She didn't screw her face in concentration as always (maybe going natural didn't need that much concentration) or nor did her expressions change from the blank mask she was wearing. Her face, however, was a completely different matter.

Her cheeks were not so round anymore. She had soft dark hair with streaks of brown. Her face still had that heart shape that she got from her father, but she looked more like her mother now. They had the same pale skin, prominent jawbones and straight noses and they both looked somewhat… aristocratic.

"Hey you look quite good, why'd you change that face?" he asked, hoping it wasn't a very personal question.

"It reminds me of Aunt Bella." She offered no further explanation and he thought he invaded her privacy enough as it was. So he merely replied with an, "Oh."

There was a few moments' uncomfortable silence. Then Tonks changed back to her usual form: round cheeks, button nose and large eyes. She snickered and said, "Look at you! You don't even know who the hell is Aunt Bella and you're sitting there like you don't want to know anymore. You know if Hermione was here, she'd nag until I gave her my whole family tree up to fourteen generations."

"Uh… it's kind of personal, isn't it? I figured if you wanted to tell me, you'd just tell." He said uncertainly.

She beamed at him and said, "Aren't you a sweetheart. I'll tell you, but not now, I don't want to get my mood down this early in the morning."

"But it's almost noon!"

She gave him a 'shut up and do as I say' look and he dropped it. After a few moments of silence, she asked him about his summer and they fell back to the easy companionship.

* * *

Lunch at the Tonks residence was simply delicious. With Andromeda's insistence, Harry had second helpings of everything. He was full to the point when he couldn't even get up from the table. Andromeda promised he would gain a few pounds before he went back to Hogwarts.

"So is there anything you really like to eat, Harry?" she asked, scooping out ice cream from the bowl. Seeing his hesitation, Tonks piped up, "Go on Harry. It's not every day that mum offers you your favourite food." Getting a look from her mother, however, she admitted, "Okay, maybe once... or thrice... a week."

Andromeda just shook her head in amusement and looked back at Harry questioningly.

"Er... treacle tart would be nice." He said, feeling self-conscious. Andromeda just smiled and dumped a large scoop of ice cream in Harry's plate.

"By the way, I have a friend from the Ministry coming over anytime now. She'll be checking your wand for the last spell performed and you can have your name cleared within the hour."

Before she finished the sentence properly, the fire roared, turned green and ejected a tall witch in black robes. Jumping back in surprise, Harry immediately reached for his wand, only to remember he left it in Dora's room.

"Hello Amy. Want some ice cream? We were just finishing." Andromeda said casually, as if witches coming out of the fireplace was a perfectly normal thing to happen.

"Wouldn't mind." The woman replied, looking curiously at Harry. Then she spoke to him, without any sort of introductions.

"My niece speaks highly of you Mr. Potter. And quite often, too."

Feeling extremely stupid, he replied, "Er... does she?" He could see Tonks suppressing a snort. What was so funny here? And who was this woman's niece?

Finally, Andromeda came to the rescue. "Harry, this is my friend Amelia Bones, also happens to be the head of DMLE. I guess you already know her niece Susan, don't you?"

So she was Susan's aunt. "Hello Madam. Susan is a very good friend of mine." He said, this time feeling a little confident. At least Sue won't say anything bad about him.

She smiled warmly. "Well, knowing your father, I must say I was surprised to hear that you were so... not mischievous. But then again, you are the son of Lily." She chuckled and Andromeda laughed too. He just felt a warmth hearing about his parents yet from someone else.

"Did you know them well Madam Bones?" he asked politely.

"Oh call me Amelia, dear. And yes, I did know them. I was the Head Girl when Lily became prefect in her fifth year. She used to complain about how James Potter always stalked her and asked her out every chance he got, but I always knew that she secretly fancied him too. I lost count how many times I said 'I told you so' after they got engaged. In fact, Andi and I had a wager for how long it would take James to propose once they were out of Hogwarts." She said, smiling at old memories.

"So who won it?" Tonks asked. Both women beamed fondly at the question.

"No one." Andromeda answered. "I bet two years and Amy bet three. He proposed within three months." Tonks giggled and Harry smiled widely.

"Okay, I'll drop by some other time to chat around, but let's get over with the business now. Can you show me your wand Harry? I'll just see what spell you last performed and when was it. I understand you were accused of casting a flaming charm? Yes? Okay, bring it."

Amelia cast the Priori Incantatem and saw that the last spell was a Tickling Charm, performed a month ago. Remembering that it was Susan he cast the charm on, his cheeks reddened a bit, but thankfully, no one noticed. Soon, Amelia was throwing a powder from an urn beside the fireplace into the fire, and she vanished into the fire as the flames went green.

"Er... how does she do that?" he asked no one in particular. Tonks answered him, "It's called Floo network, kind of like muggle phones, most wizarding fireplaces are connected by it. It's our normal transportation system."

"Wicked!" Harry said with a wide grin. Both the Tonks women laughed at his expression.

* * *

Harry and Tonks were coming out of the cinema. Tonks was a huge sap when it came to movies. She chose the movie with the most romance (to the point of sickening) and she was crying like a hosepipe when the movie ended. Harry was very uncomfortable as he had no clue about what to do when a girl was crying so badly after watching a movie.

"It's alright Tonks, they were happy at last." He offered, which made her wail.

"But it was so sweet! After all that's happened to them they still got together!"

Harry was at a loss for words, so he just led her home and she was still sniffing when Andromeda greeted them at the door.

"How bad was it?" she asked Harry sympathetically. Harry was expecting that she would want an explanation of why he brought her daughter home crying her eyes out, but apparently this was a common occurrence for the young girl. They all went inside and after a few moments, Ted Tonks came back from work.

"Hey Harry. Finally you are here. These two have been talking about it for two weeks. Everything alright?" he asked with a smile, while Andromeda took his cloak.

"Hello Mr. Tonks. Yeah, everything is great. How was your day?"

Ted sighed. "I wish I could say it was fine, but the minister is a total idiot, he'll believe anything if you shove down a few gold coins in his pocket. And please call me Ted."

"What happened dear?" Andromeda asked as she placed a bowl of hot soup in front of her husband and took a seat beside him.

"Old Lucy Malfoy is spending a lot in 'donations' and Fudge cleared charges against him of possessions of illegal dark artefacts. Why people voted for him as the minister, I'll never understand. So what did you lot do today? And why are your eyes red, Dora?" he asked, looking concernedly at his daughter.

"Oh they went to the cinema again and she picked a romantic one. Can't say I'm surprised" Andromeda waved her hand at him and the girl looked a bit sheepish.

Ted visibly relaxed, but he was still concerned. Ever since they took their daughter to a romantic film, she had been crying her eyes out. At first he thought maybe the film was really touchy and she just got it more than he did. But Dora cried like this after every film that had a good bit of romance in it. Ted loved his daughter more than anything else and it bugged him to no end. His wife assured him that some girl are like that when they read or watch romantic stuff, but she also admitted that those girls loved to put on make-up and dress up all the time and those girly jazz. Not that he had a problem with those girls (he saw it kind of similar to men who are obsessed with bodybuilding) neither did Dora actually need make-up, but he knew his daughter was not into those girly stuff. He knew she dated a lot of young men at Hogwarts and he wanted to confront the little bastards who broke his baby's heart, but Andromeda restrained him, saying that she needed to learn from her mistakes and if he interfered she would grow to resent him. And she also said that her daughter was very capable of revenge herself. So he just kept tab of his tomboy daughter, who had more male friends than female ones and every time they received a letter from her Head of House Professor Sprout, he assured her that he would talk to her and see that she stopped getting detentions. Technically, he did talk to her about that, but instead of telling her to stop creating havoc, he just asked her not to get caught. He knew it wasn't the ideal thing to do, but he couldn't help spoiling his precious daughter. And to her credit, Dora hardly got caught anymore. He thought Andromeda would go berserk if she knew that he indirectly encouraged their daughter in her mischievous acts, but to him, it was worth it.

Unknown to her husband and daughter, Andromeda actually knew of Ted's 'unusual' advice. At first she was shocked that Ted would give such an advice to their daughter, but she didn't mind. She wanted Dora to have the childhood she never had. She wanted her daughter to be spoiled. In her childhood, Andromeda wasn't allowed to cry in public, talk to boys unless necessary, she was expected to be the top of her year and she was promised that she would be disowned from the family if they ever got a letter from her teachers. Their only form of entertainment was to read books in the library or sit down and talk with her sisters. Talking with her sisters was strangely pleasant. Bella would just complain about the filthy mudbloods and blood traitors and how they needed to be kicked away like the filth they were. Cissy would talk about the 'appropriate' girly things like dresses and balls and eligible pureblood bachelors. Andromeda was never in the same page with them, in fact, sometimes she thought she was in an entirely different book. All three of them had been raised in the same way, yet they were so different from each other. The only person she felt comfortable in the family was her cousin Sirius, and when he saw him run away from Uncle Orion and Aunt Walburga, she decided to do the same, family honour be damned. Later that year, Andromeda Black confessed to her boyfriend Ted Tonks that she would run away right away after graduation. A month later, Ted offered her to move in with him. At first she refused downright. They had been dating only for a year and it seemed wrong to impose on the poor boy, especially as she couldn't repay him in any way. She cornered Sirius to ask him if he could help her to get a job right after the graduation. Sirius became suspicious, so she told him about her plan to escape from the Black prison, where a marriage contract with the Selwyn heir awaited her.

Sirius' first reaction was to let out a hoop of joy and hug Andromeda to death and shouting how he always knew that Meda would come over to the 'light side'. When he calmed down, he promised to talk with James' father, who had excellent contacts, and that she could relax and worry about getting through her NEWTs. After a week, James and Sirius found her on her way back from the library. She knew James Potter, but never talked to him, mainly because it was not normal for a Slytherin to talk with a Gryffindor or vice versa. The messy haired boy, however, put all his prejudices in the bin and talked with her like they were the best of friends. Apparently, Sirius' word was enough for him. They asked her what kind of job she was looking for, and what did she expect to be paid. Andromeda was good in Potions, DADA, Transfiguration and Government & Politics. She crossed out politics, as her family would surely disown her as soon as she escaped, which would be really bad for politics. She figured she could work for Gringotts as a Curse-Breaker, or maybe there was some job in the ministry that might require her talents...

When they still couldn't find any solutions after half an hour, James came up with an idea.

"Here's the deal, you convince your parents that you want to stay at the castle for Christmas because of NEWTs, but you board the Hogwarts Express and then come with us at my parents' place. You could discuss everything with him and he would have a better idea of what job suits you. How does that sound?" he asked excitedly. Andromeda admitted that the plan was excellent, except for the fact that she couldn't board the train without Cissy and Bella knowing, and that was sure to reach her parents' ear. However, she promised she would look for a solution and let them know. Later that night, she went to the Heads' Dorm to borrow the Hogwarts rule book from Amy. She was a Slytherin, and she would use that trait to take control of her life.

The plan was all pretty simple. After seeing off Bella and Cissy, she went to her Head of House, Professor Slughorn. The rule said that students who are of age were allowed to leave the castle during holidays if they wished to, but they had to notify their House Heads. Slughorn was, luckily, enjoying his mead and didn't even ask any questions before encouraging her to go on. James gave her the floo address to his house and she didn't hesitate to step on the Potions master's fireplace to reach her destination.

The conversation with Jason Potter was quite pleasant. He was warm and friendly, and offered her to be a Potion-maker at a Potions store he just brought over. The salary he offered was too much and she tried to bring him down to a reasonable amount, but he wouldn't listen to any of it. Finally, she accepted the offer after thanking him profusely, had a wonderful dinner with the Potters and Sirius, asked Katherine Potter about some of her special recipies, and then came back to Hogwarts before curfew. She felt like she was free at last. She had a job, and now she could afford her own flat, though the idea of sharing with Ted suddenly seemed very interesting to her.

* * *

"Don't you wanna get some money for spending?"

"I want to, but I think I should cut down on my expenses because I don't think there's enough money in my vault to last the six more years of school, and I guess I won't start making money right after I finish Hogwarts."

Tonks looked at him weirdly. "You don't have enough money to last a few years with school? That's a load of crap if you ask me. Oi mum!" she shouted at her mother, who was reading the _Daily Prophet _on the other corner of the room.

"What Nymphadora?"

"Don't call me that. Can you come over here for a bit? Ickle Harry thinks he is poor." She winked at Harry who stuck out his tongue at her.

"It's not polite to call someone poor, Dora! And why do you think you are poor, Harry?" she asked him curiously. The Potters weren't filthy rich like the Blacks, but she was certain that Harry could afford to live in luxury for another fifty years before he ran out of money. She didn't know the details of course, but she guessed he was more likely to have more than that. Harry repeated the same thing he told Dora, and Andromeda was surprised. They should make an inquiry about his vault.

"Do you want to go to Gringotts and check? Because I think you should have more money than what you are saying."

They agreed as they didn't have any other plans. Within half an hour, they were standing in front of the fire and Andromeda was carefully instructing Harry about how the floo worked. Making sure he got everything, she handed him some powder. Nervously, he threw them at the fire and shouted "Simmer & Smoke" and stepped in.

He landed on his bum and before he could get up, Dora was spinning out of the fire too. As expected, she landed on her arse too, right beside Harry and they grinned at each other before getting up clumsily. Andromeda came out quite gracefully and Harry made a mental note to ask her later how she did that.

For now, he looked around the place they were in. It looked like a potions lab, but unlike Snape's office, it was much brighter and did not have the usual gloom that hung around the dungeons. About ten people were working in different counters, and the nearest girl, who didn't look older than nineteen, greeted Andromeda when she saw them.

"Hello Carly, how's it going?" she asked the girl.

"Everything is fine Andromeda. And hello Nym... Tonks." She corrected at the last moment.

"Hiya Carly. Meet my friend Harry. Harry, this is Carly." They greeted each other and Harry was thankful that Tonks didn't say his full name and that his scar was covered with his hair. He didn't want to be gawked at right after falling on his bum.

"Okay, we need to get going. I'll come back after lunch, make sure we have enough vaccine potions on stock. Children will be getting their Hogwarts letter soon and there will be a rush for those soon enough. Last year was bad enough." She muttered as Carly grimaced at some memory and nodded.

As they were getting out of the shop, Harry quietly asked Andromeda what was the connection with Hogwarts letter and Vaccinations. She looked at him oddly. "Didn't you take vaccines before attending Hogwarts?"

"Er... no. The Dursleys-"

"Not the muggle ones, they won't work on you anyway. Didn't you receive any magical vaccines?"

As far as he remembered, "No."

Andromeda was starting to get angry. "Who delivered your Hogwarts letter?"

"Hagrid." He answered meekly, afraid that he might've put his big friend in trouble. But Andromeda's expression changed to that of frustration.

"What was Dumbledore thinking? Most muggleborns have a professor for explaining them and he sends Hagrid for Harry Potter? No wonder you didn't know about floo."

Feeling the need to defend his friend, he started, "Erm... I don't think it was Hagrid's fault-"

"Oh I know that dear. I don't think he knew about vaccines in the first place. I'm just shocked that Dumbledore didn't bother to show up himself to explain you everything, seeing that it was his fault you lived with those muggles in the first place. I swear to Merlin, if he wasn't your Headmaster..." she muttered away for a while, then she turned at Harry and said that he would receive all the vaccines on their way back.

When they reached in front of a goblin in Gringotts, Andromeda stepped up and said in a clear voice, "We wish to inquire about the Potter vault."

The toothy goblin looked at her and asked, "And who are you to inquire about the Potter vault?"

"I am the guardian of Harry Potter and he is right here with me. Now hurry up because I don't have the luxury to wait all day." She said in an arrogant tone.

"Yes ma'am. I'll look for it right away." The goblin replied before turning the pages of a huge book very fast.

"Sorry madam, but the Potter vault is blocked right now. Only the Potter heir can reopen it after he turns sixteen. Can I help you with anything else?" the goblin looked at a flabbergasted Andromeda.

"But if it is blocked how did Harry take his money before? Show him your key Harry."

The goblin examined the key Harry produced and after matching it with something in the book, he looked at the group before him. "This is the key to Master Potter's trust vault. It contains a small percentage from the actual Potter vault. Right now it contains one thousand galleons, twenty sickles and three knuts."

"But there were one thousand galleons last year and I already took around two hundred galleons." Harry said, confused.

"Yes, that you did. One hundred and ninety-eight galleons and two sickles, to be exact. However, your trust vault refills after every Christmas or if you empty the vault. Do you want to make any transactions now?"

A bit relieved, Harry said, "Yes I do, but can you tell how many times can I refill before the main vault runs out?"

The goblin grinned toothily, which was really creepy by the way, and replied. "You are allowed to refill once every three months at the highest, and if you do that, you don't have to have to worry about emptying the main vault before you turn of sixteen, when the trust vault will no longer exist."

Feeling a huge weight lift from his shoulders, he asked the last question he had. "Is there any way I could withdraw money while I'm at Hogwarts?"

"Yes, you have to fill a form and then you can just owl Gringotts when you need to make any transaction. Do you want it?" when Harry nodded, the goblin placed a form in front of him. "You need to give a drop of your blood and sign here. Give the specifics of your wand and address of someone who would take charge of your vault if you can not be reached. You will be charged ten galleons per year for owl services."

Hesitating for a moment, he gave the Tonks' place as the address. Andromeda smiled widely when she saw this. After finishing with the form, the goblin suggested him a new wallet they made recently. He bought one for three galleons. It had an anti-theft charm on it, and could store up to five hundred coins without stretching from the original size. He then withdrew two hundred galleons and then converted fifty galleons to muggle pounds.

Out in the Diagon Alley, Harry brought them ice creams (he wouldn't let Andromeda pay) and they all went back to Andromeda's potion shop, where she told Harry about the shop.

"All of my potion makers are quite young. In fact, most of them joined here right after they finished Hogwarts. When I graduated from Hogwarts, your grandfather gave me a job in this shop. Yes, Jason Potter owned it before me. So after Nymphadora was born, Mr. Potter came to our house to visit her. By then we had a warm relationship. Not was he only my employer, he was also James' dad and I had a great deal of respect for him. If not for him, I might probably be married to some old pureblood weed and would be expected to sit at home, waiting for my husband to return so that I could have my food after he did. Anyhow, when he came to visit Dora, he made me a proposal. He said that he was planning to sell the store. Naturally, I felt sad. I was losing my job and I would really miss the place. But then he said that he could sell it to me. For a thousand galleons only! The shop was probably worth around eighty thousand and he gave me that choice. I could buy it for that price or he would talk with other interested clients. When he passed away after a year, I think I was more devastated than James." She stopped here to wipe away a couple of tear drops that escaped her. Then she smiled at Harry and said, "So after that I only recruited fresh graduates in need of a job. And as you can see, I don't regret that decision. Anyhow, it's almost lunchtime, so I'll ask someone to deliver all the vaccines home-"

"Mum can we eat in a muggle restaurant please?" Tonks pleaded. Her mother smiled. "Why not? And while we're at it, we could shop for Harry. He really needs new clothes."

Tonks squealed like a ten year old and Harry was excited. He never went shopping before and he supposed it would be fun.

After having a delicious lunch in an Italian restaurant, they went shopping and Harry realized how very wrong he was earlier. At first he enjoyed putting on clothes and showing them to the women before changing to another one, but after three hours, he was close to tears. He had to practically beg the women before they had mercy on him and decided to go home. Their purchases were in twelve magically shrinked bags, all paid by Andromeda. (Harry insisted to pay for his own clothes, but after one look from her, he decided he could live) Andromeda side-apparated Harry and Tonks to their home right when Ted came in.

"Busy day?" he asked the trio, two of whom were on the floor. "We've been shopping." Andromeda replied. "Would you like to join us as we fill Harry's wardrobe?"

"Uh... Andromeda, I don't have a wardrobe." Harry said tiredly.

"Oh but you do." Tonks said giddily.

Alarmed, Harry went to the guest room that he occupied currently and stopped in his tracks. The room now had, aside from the bed, a medium-sized wardrobe, an armchair, a desk and a basket like the one in Dora's room. He turned around to find Andromeda standing in the doorway. Without a word, he went to her and hugged her tightly. She returned the hug, resting her chin on his head.

"Thank you." He whispered. She just gave him a squeeze in reply.

"So are we filling Harry's wardrobe or not?" Tonks loudly asked.

"How did all these stuff get into the room?" Harry wondered loudly.

"That would be me, son." Ted answered. "And it's not _the_ room, it's your room."

Harry just smiled.

_A/N: Over 100 reviews, 20,000+ hits, 160+ favourites and 260+ follows. I can't begin to thank all my readers for the amazing support they showed to this story. Kudos to _**Slytherin Studios**_ for being the 100__th__ reviewer. You people are absolutely wonderful! :D_

_oh, there's a poll in my profile about this story. vote please?  
_

_Fulgrim: I really love the British customs, so I guess you can say complication works for me ;)_

_A guest said that Dumbledore is not transfigurable. I think you meant that he is an excellent dueller to be jinxed or cursed, but here he was totally unprepared. I don't say Andromeda can beat him in a duel, that's quite absurd._

_I should also mention that I will be away from my computer for the next two months, but I will try to update whenever I can._

_Cheers!_


	9. Second Year

_A/N: I looked back at the first few chapters and found that the extents of mistakes were quite large. So I got someone to beta the first four chapters for me. Loads of thanks and candies for _**Iris Luna**_ for her wonderful job! _

_I decided not to write about the summer at the Bones' summer house. Let us assume it was fun and leave it at that. Now let's move on to second year. Oh, just so you know, Ginny __**doesn't **__have a crush on Harry._

_Warning: Crappy chapter alert!_

**9. Second Year**

"Harry!"

"Dear Harry!"

"We are proud to present-"

"Our dear little sister-"

"Gin-Gin-"

"Otherwise known as Ginevra."

The little red headed girl looked thoroughly embarrassed at being introduced to Harry Potter this way. Harry noticed this (and he was feeling a little uncomfortable himself) and said, "Hello Ginevra. Er... welcome to Gryffindor."

"Hi. Call me Ginny." She said in a shy voice.

"Right. Okay Ginny, see you around, and don't believe everything these two say about Hogwarts."

Fred and George faked identical looks of terrible offence. Fred said, "You wound us, oh Boy-Who-Jizzed! We are nothing but helpful to ickle firsties like our dear Gin-Gin-"

"-and for your unkind information, this little bugger here has enough experience with us to fall into our occasional harmless jokes." George finished. Ginny snickered at his brothers' antics. Harry just snorted.

"Okay Harry-"

"Pleasant as the conversation was-"

"We can't afford to hang around all day, because-"

"We are running late for Gin's introduction with Angelina-"

"And Alicia, and Katie too-"

"And Lee. So see, we are in a tight schedule-"

"Just get going already!" Ginny interrupted loudly and dragged the twins away from Harry.

"She better get some friends other than those two." Hermione said from the sofa. Harry looked at her, surprised. He didn't realize she was paying attention to their conversation.

"Why'd you say that? Those two are great, though a little irritating at times."

Hermione looked up from the book she was reading and put it aside. "Harry, they are troublemakers. They live for causing trouble. And while they are funny at times, is it really a good thing to have them as the role models of a first year?"

Harry sighed and looked at Neville. He nodded subtly. They had talked about their bushy haired friend over the summer. (Andromeda convinced Augusta Longbottom to let him come at Susan's. The old witch looked somewhat scared of her, though Andromeda was nothing but pleasant.) They decided to talk with her about her 'breaking rules are worse than murder' attitude. They understood that she had grown up in a respectable family who encouraged her to maintain all kinds of rules and regulations. As good a lesson as it was, she took it too much seriously. Tonks offered to talk with her, but Susan thought it would be better if Harry and Neville talked instead. Not that Tonks couldn't talk, but she insisted that it would be easier if it came from Harry and Neville, her first friends in Hogwarts. After a while, Tonks agreed that it was probably the best idea, and they trained the guys to talk with a girl, who might lash out, become emotional, or even report them to a teacher for encouraging her to the wrong path. Harry didn't believe she would do that, but Hannah said she wouldn't bet on it.

"Hermione, can we talk?" Harry asked gently, indicating to Neville, her and himself. An alarmed look crossed the girl's face, but she nodded.

Suddenly, Harry forgot all the possible starting lines the girls have taught him. He momentarily felt panic rising, but he kept his cool and decided to improvise.

"Hermione, why do you always insist on following rules?" noticing her offended look he quickly added, "I'm not saying it's a bad thing to do, but what makes you really want to follow the rules?"

Hermione looked shocked that someone would question on why rules should be followed. After a few moments, she realized that they were waiting for an answer, and for the first time in her life, she didn't have a good enough answer. "I... I don't know, I guess because it is the right thing to do?" she answered uncertainly. Neville spoke up.

"Do you really think all rules are right? Do you know there is a rule that says muggleborns can't be Minister of Magic. Do you think that is right?"

Without giving her a chance to reply, Harry took over. "It's wrong. What you have to realize is that the people who wrote the rules or laws are every bit human like us. Today's law is very likely to be tomorrow's joke. Sure, most rules around here are for our own good, but sometimes we have to think what is best for us for ourselves, rather than leaving it to the authorities."

Neville cut in, "Consider when Harry saved you from the troll in our first year."

Harry scowled at him, but Neville ignored him. When looking for pointers, Harry asked him not to bring it up. He considered it kind of emotional blackmailing. Apparently, Neville had other plans.

"What about it?" Hermione said in a small voice.

"Well, when that idiot Quirrell announced that there was a troll in the school, we were told to go to our dormitories. Now think what would happen if he decided to just report to a prefect, instead of breaking an express command from the headmaster himself."

Hermione was close to tears and Harry tried to cool her a bit. "Look Hermione, you are smart and you have a liking for rules. We don't want you to change yourself, it's just who you are. And it's a good quality too. What we are asking is to relax up a bit. Look around you. How would you feel if there were no Fred and George or no Peeves or if everybody lived by the rules? Think a bit before you answer."

_Susan's training is working well_, Harry thought. The bookworm was thinking hard, and after a while, she said in a small voice, "It wouldn't feel right. Hogwarts wouldn't be the same." The boys smiled and nodded at her. But she continued in the same small voice, "I just try to fit in. The magical world is new to me, and sometimes I feel I just... don't fit here. I want everyone to accept me as one of them. I figured if I always do the right things, they will accept me. It's not like I can go back from magic. That's why I try so hard to do well in class; I want to prove that I am not useless." She sobbed the last words. Tonks' training kicked in, and Harry went to sit beside her and put an arm around his friend.

"You don't need to prove that to anyone, Hermione. You are not useless, unless it's quidditch. You are the best in our year, above purebloods like Daphne Greengrass or halfbloods like Padma Patil. You are a great friend and a good human. If someone doesn't accept you after all these, they are the ones who needs to be removed from the world." Hermione gave him a watery smile and said, "Thank you Harry, and you too Neville. You have no idea how much it means to me. I realized that maybe I was being too pushy, and when you wanted to talk, I was afraid that you would say that you guys don't want to be around me. Thank you." She sniffed and hugged them both.

Neville said, "Look at Percy Weasley. He is the top of his year, prefect, and totally stuck up with rules and stuff. He might be perfect academically, but how many friends does he have? On the other hand, look at Tonks. She's always up to something stupid or mischievous, but most people love her. And before you mention, her grades are good too. She has three 'O's and four 'E's in her OWLs, and that's not very easy to get." Hermione looked genuinely surprised at Tonks' result. She had pegged the older girl to be carefree and not having any great future, but it seemed she was wrong. Maybe she shouldn't judge so fast.

"Okay, I'll try to loosen up, but it might take some time." She said, with a hint of pleading in her voice. Harry and Neville smiled at her.

"Thank you, Hermione." Neville said.

"That's what we asked for." Harry finished.

* * *

"You're a parseltongue?" Tonks asked, shocked. Harry looked confused. Tonks clarified, "You can talk to snakes?" Harry just nodded. She stared at him for a long time, before she tightly hugged him and whispered, "You are not going to like this, Harry. But I'll be here for you, don't worry." Harry was more confused than ever. He wasn't going to like what? And why was Tonks acting like someone died? She released him after a whole minute and when she did, she said in a constricted voice, "Try not to go anywhere alone. Tell you what, I'll teach you the shield charm and some basic hexes. You need to learn to defend yourself. Meanwhile, ignore if people point at you or act weirdly. They aren't worth giving a fuck. Now take out your wand..."

As it turned out, Harry could handle mutterings and nasty glances better than Tonks. And it was very helpful that Harry had friends in Hufflepuff. Ernie Macmillan had been trying to convince his housemates that Harry was Slytherin's heir and he was after all the muggleborns in the school. He overheard a conversation between the first year Puffs in the library.

"I bet you anything that Potter is behind these attacks. He's a parselmouth, for crying out loud!" Ernie was saying.

"I'll take that bet." Susan replied coolly. Ernie wasn't discouraged b her tone. "Look Susan, we know that you are friendly with the guy, but consider this, if he isn't dark or powerful, how could he defeat You-Know-Who when he was an infant?"

"The same way you can change a pig to a goat, magic." replied Hannah. Ernie was not impressed.

"You two are sticking up for a Gryffindor over your own house?" he asked angrily.

"Believe me Ernie, there's no one I'd rather stick for where Harry is concerned." Susan said in a dangerous voice and Harry could feel the power in her tone.

"So shut up and keep your ideas to yourself." Hannah supplied.

"Yeah, stop bitching around Macmillan, it's a girl thing. And as they said, keep your opinion to yourselves if you don't want to become eligible for bitching. Don't get it? Keep talking and I'll vanish your balls. Not a great loss on your part, if you ask me." Tonks said, appearing out of nowhere. Thoroughly intimidated, Ernie backed off in a hasty fashion and disappeared quickly.

"Hey Tonks." Susan and Hannah said in unison. "Hello ladies." She replied with a grin.

"Hey." Harry stepped out from behind the shelf and faced the girls.

"Hey handsome!" Tonks winked at him. Quite used to her flirty nature, he winked back before addressing all of them. "Thanks for being there for me, guys. It means a lot to me."

"Shut up Harry. We are Hufflepuffs. Our loyalty sets us apart from others. You can count on us for being there for you."

Harry wondered what on earth had he done to have friends like these.

* * *

Harry was happily sitting on the sofa with Andromeda, watching the television, while Tonks was over at some friend's house.

"She usually hangs around her friends' place on Christmas holidays, and by friends I mean a lot of friends. But she spends around one hour on each place, so you'll have her back by dinner."

Harry smiled. "It's okay Andromeda. I like to spend time with you too. And thanks again for the gift. It's my best gift ever." Andromeda presented him a photo album of his parents when they were at Hogwarts. He didn't know any of the friends those were in the photo with them, but he was so busy drinking in all the details of Lily Evans and James Potter, he hardly asked any questions about them, and Andromeda didn't complain.

"No problem dear. I thought you would like that. Want some more treacle tart?"

"Are you serious? If I had another drop of water, I'll burst." After a little pause, he said in a quiet, softer voice, "Thanks Andromeda. Thanks for everything you did for me. I never met my mother or father, but if all the things I heard about them are true, they would thank you too." Andromeda gently put an arm around him and squeezed his shoulders.

"Tonks is back, fellas!" Tonks announced her arrival from the fireplace.

"Oh dear, we are talking about you in third person now?" her mother asked, feigning exasperation. Tonks stuck out her tongue at her and Harry chuckled.

"Enough laughing, mister. Come on. You're going with me."

"Er... where?" he asked, a bit nervous. "Edward's place." She replied.

"Why? You go on, I'll just intrude and sit around awkwardly."

"Hey, no one likes a smart arse. Yeah, sorry mother. Edward wanted me to bring you, so get ready in a minute if you want your-" she was silenced by Andromeda, whose wand was going back to its place.

"I don't appreciate swearing in my house, Dora. And I sure don't appreciate my daughter swearing like a sailor. Now go on and bring him back by nine." She cancelled the charm and walked away.

"So why did Edward want me to come?"

"We are playing football."

_A/N: Yeah, I know. Crappy and useless chapter. I just wanted to get over with second year as third year is going to be an important and long (chapter-wise) year. Hope you didn't hate it too much._

_ And thanks to Fulgrim for the help. Those are corrected. Thanks again mate!  
_

_Eid Mubarak!_


	10. Flight and Revenge

**10. Flight and Revenge**

_Dear Harry,_

_How are you? I'm okay, not too good. My parents do not want me to go back to Hogwarts after what happened last term. I told them that it was not an everyday scenario and tried to convince them that being an untrained witch will be hazardous form me and everyone around me. They asked me about other magical schools. Though Durmstrang wouldn't accept me because of me being a muggleborn, Beauxbatons should be nice, I think. Anyways, I am really worried that they might send me to France or America, or anywhere other than Hogwarts._

_Are you still visiting Susan again this summer? Do you think she would mind if I came too? My parents have a series of seminar and other stuffs all summer, so it would be good to spend some time with you people._

_Have you finished the Charms essay? I think I'll have to add a few lines now I've revised it. And what about the polyjuice potion essay? Reading about it, I am glad Susan talked you out of brewing it. It can go horribly wrong. And how do you think our new Defence teacher this year might be? Considering the last two, I wouldn't be surprised if this one is less intelligent than Crabbe or Ronald Weasley. Though I hope we will have a good teacher for a change._

_Speaking of Weasleys, are you going to visit them? They invited you, didn't they? And I feel bad for the Ginevra girl. She had to have such an ordeal in her very first year; poor girl._

_You didn't tell me what electives you chose yet. I have signed up for Arithmancy, Runes, Muggle Studies, Divination and Care for Magical Creatures. I know it's quite a lot of subjects, but there is nothing called too much knowledge, right? Besides, I find the subjects quite fascinating. Of course I know all about muggles, but it will be exciting to read it from a wizard's point of view. And I have read all about the magical creatures in _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. _If you want, I can lend it to you, it's a nice read._

_Did you hear about the escaped convict Sirius Black? He is even in the muggle news .It was supposed to be impossible to break out of Azkaban, but this Black guy somehow managed it. We should be careful._

_Anyhow, hope to hear from you soon. Take care._

_Love,_

_Hermione_

Harry folded the piece of parchment and placed it on top of his desk. The letter bothered him a lot. The first thing that came to his mind was Sirius Black. He heard the name somewhere, but he couldn't remember where. And Andromeda said it was impossible to break out of Azkaban because most prisoners lose their minds after a few months. Maybe this Black guy was a fresh prisoner, or maybe he is really powerful.

He put the thoughts aside and considered Hermione's parents. He admitted they had a fair point. No one likes to see their daughter being petrified by a basilisk. But that didn't mean he would like to see his friend taken away from Hogwarts. He wondered if Dumbledore could pursue them. He had learnt not to expect Dumbledore to do something that ended well, but it was an option that wouldn't hurt to explore.

He was torn at the idea of visiting the Weasleys. At one hand, Mr and Mrs Weasley, the twins and even Ron requested him over and over to come. But he was worried about Ginny. He had no idea of how she was doing and restrained himself from writing to her. He was afraid that seeing or even hearing from him might bring out bad memories from the Chamber. He would take Andromeda's opinion before he decided.

He smiled as he read about the polyjuice potion again. He wanted to know if Draco Malfoy was the real Heir of Slytherin and polyjuice was the first thing that came to his mind. Hermione said it was very difficult to brew and Hannah added that it would be very difficult to get all the ingredients. Harry didn't pay them much heed, but then Susan pointed out that he could simply follow a Slytherin under his Invisibility Cloak. Tonks said that she would morph into Pansy Parkinson and accompany him in case he needed backup. After their adventure, Tonks gave out candies to them, and when asked, she said it was because she finished visiting all common rooms in Hogwarts.

He didn't realize that he didn't tell Hermione about his electives. He took Runes, Arithmancy and Care for Magical Creatures. He wanted to take Divination instead of Arithmancy, mainly because he heard Ron telling Neville that Divination was easy, but Andromeda said that Divination was useless because if you didn't have the talent, there was no point in studying it. He wondered how messed up Hermione's timetable would be with all the electives along with core subjects.

Picking up a quill, he dipped it in a pot of ink. Sometimes he wondered why wizards didn't use muggle pen. Was it because they were too proud to admit that muggles had a more efficient way of writing than theirs? Tonks explained that parchments were magically enhanced objects that could endure quite a few charms. Ink from a pen would be simply absorbed by it, leaving no trace of any writings. Muggle papers couldn't be used because adding even a simple concealment charm would blotch the writings on it. But the most important reason for parchment and quills to be still around was convention. They have been in the wizarding world for a long time and most wizards (most purebloods, who took the decisions, anyway) didn't like a change.

_Dear Hermione,_

_I am doing fine, thanks. I am sorry to hear about your parents' thoughts. Of course, they want you to be safe, but I would be very upset if I was taken out of Hogwarts, whatever the reason. Have you considered writing to the Headmaster? He might not-_

"BOY! COME DOWN HERE!"

He was surprised. After the encounter with Andromeda, his uncle hardly spoke to him, let alone yell. Hedwig was out, so there wasn't any point in finishing the letter right away. Putting the parchment aside, he went down to meet his uncle, who was scowling at him.

"What do you want?" he asked bluntly.

"Don't you dare to take that tone with me you freak." Vernon hissed. It was sort of amusing to see that the man still thought he could boss him around.

"Yeah fine, I'll let Andromeda know your thoughts have changed."

Vernon's face went red and he growled, "I could kill you and make it look like an accident."

"And you think they'll buy it? We are wizards, uncle. Now what do you want?"

Vernon flinched horribly at the mention of 'wizards' but he admitted he couldn't win. Oh, only if that woman wasn't a freak, he could've beaten her to a pulp.

"Marge will be leaving tomorrow and you have to be there at tonight's dinner. Remember you go to St Brutus' and I don't want to see any funny business or any ruddy owls."

Harry could protest if he wanted, but he didn't. He just nodded and went back to his room, hoping Aunt Marge wouldn't be too difficult to endure.

Harry was shaking in fury as Marge was saying how Lily Evans was a 'bad egg' and how she ended up with a scoundrel.

"Just like I expected, a homeless drunk and a tramp-"

"SHUT UP BITCH!" Harry bellowed. Marge swelled in anger and become redder than anyone though could be possible. Trouble was, she kept swelling.

"COME BACK YOU SON OF A BITCH AND FIX HER BACK!" Vernon yelled after Harry, who was now in his room, packing everything on his trunk. He had enough. Screw Dumbledore's wards and screw the Dursleys.

"Shut up. She had it coming. Don't test me, uncle." He pointed his wand between his sweaty eyebrows and went out to catch the Knight Bus. Thanks Merlin Andromeda taught him how to summon it in an emergency. His trunk was quite light as most of his clothes were at Tonks' place.

As he was about to raise his wand, he spotted a large pair of grey eyes looking at him. It was a giant dog.

* * *

"Bloody brilliant, Harry! Show them who's the boss." Tonks praised him, but Andromeda was already thinking. Harry couldn't avoid the letter this time, but would they press further charges? Underage magic was one thing, but she never knew anyone who did accidental underage magic, which made her believe that Harry was either unstable or really powerful. But that was not something that mattered right away. Dumbledore had to know about how his pet muggles wouldn't want Harry anymore. She was sure the old bummer would eventually convince those- for the lack of a better word- filth to take him back again, but she was interested in how Harry would react. Andromeda knew if Lily was here, she would probably want to hex Dumbledore to next year. Would Harry protest to the old man or would he go quietly?

Within an hour, Andromeda was smirking to herself. _Seems like Harry's inner Lily is here, after all,_ she thought. He was downright refusing to go back and though Dumbledore had looked at her multiple times, silently seeking help, she deliberately ignored him.

Dumbledore was trying his hardest to pursue Harry. "It is your home, Harry. You have to get back for your own safety and I promise your uncle and-"

"I don't give a damn! I don't care if I am unsafe because that is not my home. This is my home." Harry almost growled the last words, and as if in cue, a fireball appeared in front of Dumbledore and disappeared instantly, leaving a piece of paper behind. Dumbledore snatched it out of the air and read it. His face fell and he looked resigned.

"Okay Harry, you win. You don't have to go back to Privet Drive."

"What?" Andromeda shouted disbelievingly. "Are you serious? He doesn't have to go back?"

The headmaster sighed and nodded. "No point in going back there. The wards are broken. The wards were to hold as long as Harry still called that place home and stayed there at least three weeks, till he was seventeen. Now he declared somewhere else to be his home, the wards are no more there. I didn't warn this before because you could have just said the words to not return there. I understand that your time there was not pleasant, but please understand that it was all for the greater-"

"Dumbledore, you do realize that whatever you say won't make any difference? Now excuse us, Harry needs to have a proper dinner." Andromeda said, already pilling Harry towards the kitchen. Dumbledore sighed and said, "I hope you can forgive this old man for his mistakes. Believe me, I wish things were different in your childhood, but I did what I thought was best. I am sorry Harry. I will take my leave now Andromeda. Goodbye Nymphadora." with that, he turned and disappeared.

"His heart is in the right place, but his head isn't. Come on Harry, sit down. Soup?" Harry nodded and Andromeda poured him a large bowl of steaming soup.

"Harry?" Tonks asked from the door, where she was standing still for the last three minutes. Harry looked at her questioningly, blowing at the hot soup. Suddenly she screamed.

"YOU'RE GONNA LIVE HERE FROM NOW ON! WOOOHOOOOOO!"

Choking violently on the accidentally swallowed soup, he glared at her, but seeing her face stretching grin, he grinned back after a second, and soon she was hugging him to death.

"Let him go, Dora. I don't want him to suffocate in his home." Andromeda said, smiling widely.

They were joined by Ted a few minutes later and Harry remembered something he wanted to ask.

"Hey Dora, who is Sirius Black?"

All three of them stopped whatever they were doing and looked at him. He felt terribly awkward as three pair of eyes stared at him for three seconds. Finally, Dora broke the silence.

"Ah."

"What do you mean by 'ah'? And did I ask something wrong?" He asked tentatively.

Andromeda sighed and sat down beside him, waved her wand and a moment later something zoomed at her.

"Hey that's my photo album." He said, recognizing the leather album that Andromeda gave him last Christmas. Without looking at him, she turned a few pages of the album and finally pointed to one of his favourite photos: his parents' wedding.

"There, the tall man beside James. That's Sirius Black." She said without emotion.

"Wait, you mean a mass murderer was at my parents' wedding? And they had him?" Harry asked in disbelief.

"He was the best man. And of course they had him. He was your father's best friend." Ted answered him. Seeing his dumbstruck look, Andromeda took a long breath and started explaining. She didn't keep any secrets from him, telling him everything she knew.

"So he was the reason they died, wasn't he?" Harry whispered to Andromeda and out of the corner of his eyes, he noticed Dora shift uncomfortably.

"Dora, are you not telling me something?" he asked her sharply and she jumped a bit.

"I used to be Andromeda Black."

He turned to look at a cloudy faced Andromeda looking at a spot over his head. The words took a few moments to register. "You are his sister?" he blurted out.

"Cousin. He was my favourite cousin. After I ran away, he was the only one of the family who had any contact with me. If anyone told me that Sirius would betray James, I'd ask them to check their sanity, but who knew…" she trailed off, her eyes moistening. Harry understood that he struck a weakness in her. Scooting closer, he squeezed her hand. "I'm sorry Andromeda. I didn't mean to make you upset. Can I do anything to make you feel better?" he asked sincerely. He didn't expect her to ask something, of course, but-

"Tell me about the Dursleys?" she asked him. He looked alarmed for a moment. He didn't want to relieve all the bad memories of that place, but then he realized it was only fair, as he made her relieve her bad memories. And besides, he considered them family, and who else would he share these if not with family?

So he told them. He told them everything. He told them how he was beaten till he begged for it to stop for no good reason, how he was punished for talking with the girl next door, or for doing better than Dudley in tests. How Dudley's gang broke his arm and he was taken to hospital after three days, when he couldn't stop screaming however hard Vernon slapped him. He told them how Petunia starved him for four days because he dropped her favourite mug when Dudley hit him from behind. He told them about how he was bitten by Marge's dog multiple times and they left him in his cupboard to 'let it heal naturally'. He relieved his nightmares and fears and told them how he wished he was dead with his parents and how happy he felt when he knew he was going to go to Hogwarts. He told them that he could never thank them enough for taking him in and for being them for him.

Dora was crying for the last five minutes and so was Andromeda. Ted looked terribly sad. They all had the same thing in mind. He had to go through all these and he was still sane and such a sweetheart. They couldn't have blamed him if he had turned bitter, rude or evil. Yet, here he was, a guy as nice as they came, and thanking them for what they did. He had every right to hate wizards for not saving him from those monsters, but he didn't. They all wondered what Harry Potter was made of.

Dora softly held him while Andromeda was trying her best to not explode. Only if she could have them in front of her wand! Then, something clicked in her mind. Harry was going living with her for as long as he wanted. And he had no apparent desire to go back there.

_Perfect_. She thought.

Two days later, the Dursleys of Number Four, Privet Drive, had a series of terrible accidents. A drill firm, Grunnings, was burned to ash in a supposed gas leak, and the new whale-like owner Vernon Dursley, had twenty seven broken bones in a car accident. Petunia Dursley had caught up a strange disease that caused painful boils to erupt on her face and her rear. Dudley Dursley had crashed his bicycle to a truck that got away, leaving him on the street with multiple cuts, bruises and some fractures.

Ted heard about the firm burning at the ministry. The DMLE suspected it was fiendfire, but there weren't a lot of people who could contain fiendfire in a single building. When he told Andromeda about it, she looked mildly curious, and then asked him if he was hungry. Without waiting for a reply, she started peeling potatoes and put a large slice of beef in the oven, humming to herself.

Outside the kitchen window, a great black dog looked sadly at the beef and the potatoes and at the woman cooking them.

_A/N: Thanks to __**Paige**__ for reminding that Americans call it soccer. I'm neither American nor British, so mistakes like these might come quite often. I'll be grateful to everyone who points these things out to me._

_So how did you like Harry being free of Dursleys at last? Was it too sudden or unreal? Please let me know what you think. A review would be great! Oh, Vernon just bought Grunnings. Convenient, won't you say? ;)  
_

_Thanks to all the guest reviewers._

_Thanks again to Fulgrim for pointing out the mistakes. You review came just as I posted the new chapter in a cyber cafe and I didn't have the chance to correct them. I'm on it now!  
_


	11. The Outcast

**11. The Outcast**

"Don't worry. It's going to be alright. And if things go wrong, you can always floo back." Andromeda was saying patiently. Nodding, Harry grabbed a fistful of powder and threw it to the fire. Stepping to the now green flames, he shouted, "The Burrow."

"Hello Harry dear. How are you?" Mrs Weasley's smiling face was the first thing he saw as he picked himself up from the floor.

"Thanks Mrs Weasley. I'm fine."

Percy Weasley came in the room and seemed a bit surprised to see him. He had, for some strange reason, put a badge on his pyjama that said 'HB'

"Hello Harry. How nice to see you." He said pompously, extending his hand for him to shake. Pushing down a sudden urge to laugh, he shook it, feeling like he was being introduced to the mayor.

"Hi Percy." He replied.

"I hope you are well?"

Biting his tongue to stop the bubble of laughter threatening to come out, he answered, "Very well, thank-"

"Harry!" said Fred, elbowing Percy out of the way and bowing deeply. "Simply splendid to see you, old boy-"

"Marvellous," said George, pushing Fred aside and seizing Harry's hand in turn. "Absolutely spiffing."

Percy scowled.

"That's enough, now," said Mrs Weasley.

"Mum!" said Fred, as though he'd only just spotted her, and seized her hand, too. "How really corking to see you-"

"I said that's enough," said Mrs Weasley, glaring at the twins. She turned towards Harry and smiled again. "Don't mind those two, dear. Oh, did I tell you? Percy's Head Boy this year. Isn't it wonderful?"

_Dora would certainly disagree with that_, he mused. "That's great. Congratulations, Percy."

"Hey Harry." He turned back to see Ron smiling at him. He grinned back. "Hey Ron. What's up?"

"Wanna play quidditch, Harry? On our garden, two on two."

"Count us in." a deep voice came from behind them. He turned to see a red headed young man, who he had met once, accompanied by a red headed girl whom Harry already knew.

"Hi Harry." Ginny Weasley greeted him with a smile. He felt hugely relieved that she wasn't troubled by his presence.

"Hey Ginny. How are you doing?" he asked.

"Quite good. Dad won a lottery few days back and we all went to Egypt to visit my oldest brother Bill. He works there as a curse breaker. Oh this is my brother Charles Weasley. He works with dragons and was the best seeker Gryffindor had in a while. Until you came along, of course." She added, smirking at her brother, who frowned a bit.

"Call me Charlie. Nice to finally see you here. Everyone was talking about you since I came back. I want to thank you for saving our sister. She means the world for us and you have no idea how grateful we all are to you. If you ever need any sort of help, don't hesitate to ask." Harry was feeling a bit uncomfortable at the praises, but Dora had warned him this would happen.

"Don't worry. Ginny is my friend. If I don't help my friends what kind of friend would I be?"

"Okay, so are you playing?" Ron asked, breaking the slight awkwardness that hung in the air.

Ron, Ginny and Harry teamed against Charlie and the twins. Charlie charmed a walnut to fly like a snitch. Ron and George played keeper, Ginny and Fred played chaser and Harry and Charlie were seekers. Soon, the quaffle was in the air. Fred took the first lead but Ginny quickly levelled the score. Ginny then scored a second goal, but Fred's attempt was blocked by Ron. The game went on for half an hour, with Harry and Charlie occasionally helping their respective chasers when the walnut-snitch was nowhere in sight. Then suddenly, Charlie dived towards the ground. Harry couldn't see the snitch as Charlie's large body covered his line of sight. Swerving left, he saw that Charlie was just feinting and he pulled off. However, as soon as he began his ascend, he saw the walnut near George. Charlie was closer, but he was facing the other direction. It was almost similar to his first game against Malfoy, but Charlie was supposed to the greatest seeker Gryffindor ever saw before him. Lying almost flat down on his broom, he turned it sharply and shot towards the walnut. A rushing sound told him Charlie was closing in on him.

As he drew near it, the walnut suddenly flew downwards, and Harry realized he wouldn't have time to descend in this slow broom and Charlie had easier access now it was just a feet above him. Without pausing to think, he crossed his ankles on the handle, turned upside down, and let his hands go, hanging like a bat, with the ground above his head, and closed his fingers around the walnut.

"Can you teach me to do that Harry?" Ginny asked excitedly.

"I had never done it before. I don't know if I can teach you." He said apologetically.

"You don't need to learn that Gin. Most professionals don't dare to try that move and among those who try, most end up sliding off the end of their brooms. Only the players most comfortable in their broom can do that perfectly. How Harry did that in a Nimbus 500 is a wonder. You should try out for nationals as soon as you get your NEWTs. They need players like you. Heck! I bet you can beat the current seeker in a decent broom. What broom do you ride, Harry?"

"Nimbus 2000." He replied. Charlie whistled. "That's a classy broom if there was one. I used to have a Comet 220. It had a horrible turbulence when pulling out of high speed dives. Broke four teeth once, in a game against Ravenclaw. My friend in Romania bought a Nimbus 2000 last year. The ride was so smooth…" he trailed off, a dreamy look in his face.

"Okay children, dinner time." Mrs Weasley announced to them.

If he had to compare between Mrs Weasley and Andromeda in terms of their cooking abilities, he would say they were even. The Burrow was a fully magical household and the coking was done with magic, too, whereas Andromeda heavily relied on her electric oven. But Harry didn't take the trouble of comparing the cooks. He just enjoyed the great food and hospitality of the Weasleys and tried to answer all the muggle related questions of Mr Weasley. All in all, he was glad that he decided to come. He had a really good time with the Weasleys (even Percy, who gave him some advice on how to write long essays with limited information) and playing quidditch was the cherry in the top. After dinner, Mr Weasley thanked him once again thanked him for coming and Ginny gave him a parting hug. The twins tried to smuggle some of their joke sweets to him, but Mrs Weasley caught them and handed Harry the floo jar. With a wave at the group of red headed people in front of him, he threw the powder to the fire.

* * *

The fire turned green. It reminded him of floo powder, but he knew it was probably because of the empty can of soup that he stole from a muggle's shopping bag. He started feeling cold as the fire was beginning to die down. Looking at the wand beside him, he sighed and lied down beside the flicking flames.

Sirius Black wasn't meant to live like this. He was raised like a prince, two house elves were always there to carry out his orders, bring him food and prepare his bed. He hated that life, sure. He wanted to be merely comfortable and to work for his bread. He wanted to rise above his family and stand against what is wrong. He wanted to be with his friends, and maybe a family. He wasn't meant to live off stolen tinned soup and thrown away bread. He didn't want to be feared and hated by the ones he loved. He didn't want to be an outcast.

Looking back, he admitted it was partly his fault. When he arranged the switch with Wormtail, it was him who suggested that no one, not even Remus or Dumbledore knew about it. James argued that at least someone should know about it in case something went wrong, but he insisted not to let anyone in. He didn't trust Dumbledore because the man kept too much information to himself and seemed to think he knew the best for everyone. He should've told Remus, he thought bitterly. A few days before the switching of positions, Wormtail was telling him how he thought Remus was turning dark and might be the actual spy that was causing the information leak. At first, Sirius waved him off, but Peter continued occasional remarks that planted the seed of doubt towards his old friend. It had nothing to do with Remus being a werewolf, a fact Peter liked to point out every now and then. He knew Remus was jobless and the Order wasn't paying him anything. He offered to help him, as had Lily and James, but he refused politely. He began to suspect that to earn some gold, his friend might not be so loyal anymore. Looking back, he understood Peter planned for this to happen so that the friends would fall apart. _And his plan did work well. I doubted Remus and gave that little motherfucker the key to James and Lily's house. I might've as well killed them with my own hands._ He often wondered if Lily and James would ever forgive him. He knew he did not deserve forgiveness.

With a last flicker, the fire went out and the temperature dropped almost immediately. One might even have mistaken it to the arrival of a dementor, but living twelve tears with them made him an expert on recognising their presence. _Thank Merlin for small favours_, he thought bitterly. He placed a weak warming charm on the ground. He found the wand in a wizarding bar near the shore that marked the ending of the sea where the Azkaban Island was situated. He did not win it by force. He just saw a wand lying on a table in the open, while the owner passed out drunk. He transformed to his dog form and picked it up. The wand did not work properly for him, but he couldn't walk to Ollivanders' and test out wands. Even the wandcrafters in Knockturn Alley would raise an alarm if they saw him. And he couldn't risk roaming around the wizarding world too much. He was fairly certain that Remus told Dumbledore about his animagus form. After all, everyone believed he was the traitor and a Death Eater.

His thoughts turned towards Andromeda. She was like his older sister who kept him in line. He knew even Andromeda hated him now. He thought of all the time they spent planning her escape from the Black family, and the times in Grimmauld Place in their childhood. He remembered once she had a fight with Ted a few weeks before their marriage. She turned up at the middle of the night and he just sat there, holding her silently for a long time. Finally she started telling him about their disagreement and that she decided to have some time away from Ted. He didn't say her anything that night, just made her dinner and then tucked her to bed. The next morning, he asked her to reconsider her decisions, and within that evening, he sent her back home. Later, Andromeda bought him a television with a VCR Player and a few cassettes. They saw a movie together and when Sirius was thanking her once every five minutes, she confessed that it was for making her see sense, but not pushing her away when she needed him. He just hugged her and said, "That's what family is for, Meda."

Family. The word sounded hollow even in his mind. He was supposed to raise Harry in case something happened to James and Lily. He saw a glimpse of him from Andromeda's kitchen window. He guessed Meda took him in when he was… unavailable. _Harry probably grew up hating me_. He thought sadly. He thought of the miniature James laughing with a teenage Nymphadora, and tried to match him with the toddler riding a toy broom at Lily and James' place in Gordic's Hollow. There was a faint resemblance, but the toddler looked like a mixture of Lily and James, but the thirteen year old Harry was a perfect copy of James Potter, except for the green eyes of Lily_. At least he is in safe hands._

He thought about his last days as a free man. He was trying to step out of his player reputation and enter a serious relationship. He had been dating Jennifer Dawes for a few weeks and he was finally beginning to feel that he was in love, but before he could take any steps, his world came crashing down. After he paid a visit to the Tonks', he went to visit her place. It now belonged to someone else. With a heavy heart, he realized she was likely to be married to someone else now. He couldn't afford to look for her further as he did not trust this wand enough to apparate great distances with it. If he continued looking for old friends and known people, he would never reach Scotland. He didn't know where the Weasleys lived and he had decided to wait for them at Hogwarts and try to figure out a way to break in whatever house that boy was in. He was determined to catch the rat.

Pettigrew made Sirius an outcast and a murderer. He sold James and Lily out to Voldemort, made Harry an orphan and destroyed the Marauders. He would get that scumbag even if it was the last thing he did.

He just hoped Andromeda wouldn't kill him right away.

_A/N: Pretty angsty chapter. Do you like it? Let me know. A review would be great! I understand the last chapter was a bit rushed and many pointed out that Vernon didn't own Grunnings, but I guess I forgot to mention that without Harry screwing up with the Masons, Vernon had a large profit and eventually bought Grunnings. It was my fault and I apologise for the glitch.  
_

_Thanks to chunky munky for the nice words!  
_


	12. The Black Sky

**12. The Black Sky **

"That's terrible Harry!" Susan cried.

Harry shrugged and looked at Tonks, who had an uncharacteristic angry look on her face. He really hoped she would let it go, but she didn't.

"It was my past, Sue. No point thinking about those things anymore. And be careful Dora, don't want that pretty face to be like that forever, do we?" Tonks almost smiled at his efforts and replied with an exaggerated sigh, "At least someone around here admits my breathtakingly good looks."

They all chuckled. The mood of the room had been unusually sombre since Susan asked Harry about his change in living plans and eventually the Dursleys. He had noticed Tonks trying to discourage Susan with meaningful looks, but Susan didn't have eyes for anyone else. He decided to tell them, because everyone in the room was his friend, and he felt that they all deserved to know about him if they wanted to. Neville, Hermione and Hannah had been listening with sad and horrified expressions, Susan occasionally asked about small details (though, to her credit, she never asked him to elaborate about the abusing themselves. Harry suspected that she wanted to, but knew it would be too painful for him) and Tonks kept that angry expression throughout. Nowadays, she wore that expression whenever the Dursleys were mentioned.

"So did you visit the Weasleys, Harry?" Hermione asked. Harry nodded and began to tell them about the Burrow, the Weasleys, and most importantly, the quidditch match. When she first told Tonks about it, she was totally shocked. "Blimey Harry, you defeated Charlie Weasley? He was supposed to be one of the best seekers Hogwarts saw in a couple of centuries! Listen, when you start dating, save a spot for me. I want to brag that I dated an international quidditch star before he started to rewrite history." Harry had replied cheekily, "You're my favourite girl, Dora. Of course you'll have your chance." She laughed and kissed his cheek, which turned him red. He had learnt to take her flirtations easily and he even flirted back with her sometimes (though he didn't understand most of the innuendos), but whenever she kissed his cheek, he would flush red and for some strange reason, Tonks seemed to enjoy when he blushed. He often tried to make her blush, but it was near to impossible. And to make things worse, whenever Tonks hugged him nowadays (which was most of the time) he was now starting to notice that Tonks was now a young woman who possessed… erm… great stuff. _Damn the new hormones! She is four years older than you!_

Tonks was studying Harry carefully. When she first became friends with him, she suspected that his relatives didn't treat him well. Her belief was reinforced when he said they called him freak, but when he told the whole story himself in their kitchen, she wanted to murder each of them. Multiple times. She decided that once she finished Hogwarts, she would go looking for them and then she would remind them that it was not wise to mishandle her Harry.

_Her Harry? Where did that come from?_ She wondered amusedly. She would never admit to anyone, but she was quite possessive of Harry. Not the 'he is my boyfriend' type of possessive, of course. It was more like 'hurt him and your balls will be served in an Italian restaurant' kind of possessive, or maybe it was called being protective. She didn't want him to get hurt. Sure, he had been very fond of him when she was five and he was one, and in his first year, she stayed at Hogwarts for the first time, just to keep him company, but it really didn't mean anything. He was now thirteen and she would turn seventeen in three days. It was not like they would ever go out on a date. What guy would want to date a girl four years older than him? Though, once he hit puberty, which should've started by now, who knows if-

_STOP THINKING THESE! He is thirteen and you are seventeen for Merlin's sake!_

* * *

Andromeda was shocked beyond anything. She tried to read the letter again but found that her eyes were too wet. Wiping the tears in her sleeve, she focused again. It was written on a muggle page with pencil. On the corner of the page, there were little dents that oddly looked like teeth marks.

_Dear Meda,_

_Please just read the letter before you inform the authorities or throw it away._

_I know you won't believe me when I say I was and still am innocent. I don't know how much you know, but the last I heard the charges against me I was supposed to be the Potters' secret keeper who sold them out to Voldemort. Then I was supposed to have killed a street full of muggles and the good guy Pettigrew, who came after me to confront me about everything._

_Truth is I wasn't the Potters' secret keeper in the first place. When James and Lily offered me to be their secret keeper, I was really honoured, but I had a better plan for them. I told them it would be too obvious. I knew I would rather die than to betray them, but this was Voldemort we were talking about. He could force the secret out from me using legilimency or veritaserum, or something similar. I told them that they should make Peter the secret keeper, but tell everyone that I was the secret keeper, so if Voldemort decided to hunt down the secret keeper, their location would be safe with Pettigrew. Both of them agreed to this and within two days, Peter became the secret keeper._

_You might have guessed by now that Peter was the real traitor and that he framed me. It was actually me who went after him and that fucking bastard shouted to the whole world how I betrayed James and Lily and then blew up the whole street. Now you have every right to think that I made up the whole story just to get back in your good books, but I'll tell you something no one else knows. Peter Pettigrew is alive and hiding. I am not asking you to believe me right away. I broke out of Azkaban because I know where I can find him. And when I kill him, I'll throw the remains of his body for you to see and then turn myself in again. If I have to be in prison, I want to have a good reason to be there. I won't give you any more details in case this letter reaches the ministry._

_There is another thing I wanted to mention. Thank you for keeping Harry with you. I was supposed to be taking care of him in case anything happened to James and Lily. I came by your place and saw Harry. He looks like a thirteen year old James. Though I remember his eyed were like Lily's. I was very much relieved to know that he had a great childhood with someone who loved him. Thank you, Meda. I know you are not very fond of me right now, but you are still my favourite. When I saw you after all these years I almost came in to have a long chat and catch up and maybe have a great meal. I haven't had a proper meal since I escaped. Who would have guessed that the Heir of the Black family would live like a street dog?_

_You know what's the worst part of all these? Everyone I love hates me. You, Harry, old friends like Remus Lupin, probably even Jennifer. You remember Jennifer Dawes? The last woman I was dating before Azkaban? Yeah, I loved her and I never told her. Guess some things were never meant to be._

_I know that you are free to do whatever you wish, but I want request you to keep this letter away from the ministry. Needless to say, I don't trust them. They didn't even hold a trial for me. If you don't trust me, I don't really blame you. I practically killed James and Lily myself, turning them over to the traitor Pettigrew. But know that I have no intentions of harming you, Harry, Ted or Nymphadora. I delivered this letter personally (mainly because I couldn't find an owl yet) so that should tell you something about my intentions._

_Take care, Meda. I miss you._

_Love from_

_Sirius_

Her heart badly wanted to believe that her cousin was innocent and was falsely accused of betraying his best friends. But her logical mind said her he was just lying. Pettigrew was dead and the largest part of him that could be found was a finger.

_Hang on. That's fishy._

She couldn't believe she didn't give it much thought in the twelve tears that have passed by, but now she thought about it, it sounded somewhat wrong. Powerful blasting curses would blow up a body to small pieces, and it wasn't impossible to blow someone up to the extent where nothing larger than a finger would remain in one piece, but they never talked about any other parts that were found. The eyes would stay whole if not directly blasted, as would some outer bones. In fact, now she remembered that when the news came public, they said that the _only_ part of Pettigrew they found was his finger. Where did the head go? And where were the other organs like the heart and the lungs? Unless an organ liquefying curse was cast, some parts of them should have been found. She never thought about it because she never thought Pettigrew could be alive or Sirius could be innocent, but now Sirius claimed to be framed, she had to admit it was highly possible for Sirius to be innocent.

_And it feels right too. Sirius would never betray James and Lily. He has proved that over and over._

Feeling a sudden feeling of lightness, she started to pick up minor details from the letter. She didn't believe him totally, but she would give him the benefit of doubt.

He wrote it with muggle stuff. Probably he stole the paper and pencil. She thought about the plan. It played out perfectly. Everyone thought him to be the traitor, no one knew about the switch of secret keepers. And now he intended to find and kill Pettigrew. It just showed why he was a Gryffindor, not a Ravenclaw or a Slytherin. Didn't it cross his mind that bringing Pettigrew alive might help to clear his name?

Her eyes moistened again when she read about the part where he said she was his favourite. How she missed their playful banters and how they always had each other's back. They were practically siblings and when she heard about him getting a life sentence in Azkaban, despite her disgust towards him, her heart broke. And she never admitted this to anyone, but she missed him as well.

She was shocked and furious when she saw he never had a trial. Crouch claimed every captured convict had a fair trial. She would ask Amelia about it. Now she had to find a way to communicate with him. It was a potentially dangerous thing to do, but he was her family and family always have each other's back. And he didn't have a proper meal since he escaped!

"I just hope I don't kill him when I see him." She thought with a hint of a smile.

* * *

A long sigh escaped from the woman sitting in the couch. She put aside the day's _Daily Prophet _and picked up the mug of coffee. The prophet, it seemed, was very interested in the first runaway convict from Azkaban: Sirius Black.

The name came to her mind with a feeling of loathing, betrayal, and a huge sense of sadness. She used to believe in Sirius Black. She used to believe he was perfect. He was always so full of life, joking and fooling around without a care in the world. She used to believe when he said that he wanted to die protecting someone he loved. She used to believe she was one of those people. She thought James and Lily Potter and Peter Pettigrew were topping the list. When she heard he sold the Potters to Voldemort and killed Pettigrew, she was sure there was a mistake somewhere. Maybe the Pettigrew guy was the real culprit and he framed Sirius or something like that (he always seemed dodgy to her but she never mentioned it to Sirius thinking it would offend him deeply). Even when he was taken in, she was certain that Sirius would come out as innocent in the trial. When the prophet printed about his life sentence in Azkaban, a part of her knew they would realize it was a mistake and he would come to her, and she would comfort him after he had to go through all these just after he lost James and Lily. She believed Sirius was innocent. Because all the charges that were against him, they didn't sound like anything Sirius would do.

They never announced his innocence and after a whole year, listening to the long comforting speeches by her friends and family, Jennifer understood. This was an act all along. Sirius Black was a brilliant actor and like every brilliant actor, he enchanted the audience into his act, making them fall in love with him. The audience didn't realize they were falling in love with the character he was playing; a fictional character.

Trouble was she couldn't get into a happy relationship anymore. Not because she didn't try. She dated several men after it took three years for her to recover. They started well, but after a while she started comparing them to Sirius Black. _Sirius wouldn't chat with anyone else when they were on a date. Sirius wouldn't try to mollycoddle her like this; he would just joke about it until she felt better. Sirius would never show her off to his friends like an expensive watch._

She realized in the end that she had set her orbit around Sirius Black, and now he was gone, she had to go in the same circle over and over again for the rest of her life. For three years now, she gave up trying to date and worked on a publishers company. Sometimes she wished she could start over and then she realized she wouldn't trade the time she spent with Sirius with anything else.

Sirius, true to his name, was the brightest star in her sky, and now he was gone, that sky had turned… Black.

_A/N: Thanks to my regular reviewer __**Toaneo07 Ver2.0 **__for the 200__th__ review. This story now has 50,000 hits under its belt. My heartfelt thanks to each and every reader out there. Free butterbeer all around!_


	13. Feeling Proud of Yourself?

**13. Feeling Proud Of Yourself?**

James was tapping his head with his long nails. "Go away Prongs." He mumbled. James didn't stop. He decided to ignore that prat. James had a hobby of irritating Sirius.

But James was dead.

Sirius woke up abruptly and noticed that it was an owl who was tapping him. Partly relieved, and partly sad, he sat up as his stomach protested loudly.

"Hello there." His voice was cracked and rough from lack of use. The owl was looking at him with an expression that could only be impatience. Apparently, it was unaccustomed to waking up people to deliver their post-

Hang on!

He had post?

Someone wrote to him?

Without wasting a moment, he reached for the owl's leg, who quacked at the sudden action. Muttering a distracted apology, he found-

"Food? Who the hell would send me food? Are you sure you got the right person?" he asked the owl, who looked offended. Muttering "Owls these days!" under his breath, he reached for a piece of parchment sticking out of the parcel.

_I want to talk to you. Send a date and place with the owl._

_I remember that you liked grilled chicken. Cancel the featherweight charm._

The note was unsigned but Sirius knew whom it was from. Almost crying out loud at the smell of Andromeda's delicious cooking; he grabbed a piece of grilled chicken and took a bite. Accustomed to stale and rock-hard food, the spicy and juicy strip of flesh took a few seconds to adjust with his taste buds. It was heaven. Or better.

After taking three mouth-watering bites, he put the rest of the piece back to the bag. And then, for the first time in twelve years, Sirius Black cried.

…

"Jennifer Dawes."

"I don't recall anyone by that name, but I will look for her in the ministry employee list. Why do you need her again?" Amelia asked.

"Oh I have to deliver a little something to her." Andromeda replied easily. Amelia knew that Andromeda was politely telling her that it was none of her business and she wisely dropped the subject. "So where are Harry and Dora? Are they out?"

"Amy, you should probably spend more time with your family. They are at your brother's manor. And speaking of Harry, do you know why he hasn't received any disciplinary letters for blowing up that muggle woman?"

Amelia frowned at the question. Fudge had been acting strangely since Black escaped. First he asked to be informed of any magic near Harry Potter's residence. Then he started having long meetings with the Azkaban human guards. When Malfada Hopkirk told him about the blow up incident, he forbade her to send any warnings and went to the scene himself. When he found out Harry wasn't there, he started to panic and only calmed down when Arnold, the driver of the Knight Bus, informed him that Harry was in the bus, alone with his trunk and owl cage.

"I don't know. Fudge is acting strange. Not that I want charges to be pressed against Harry, but he just ignored a serious case of underage magic without a second thought. I think something dodgy is going on or he is hiding something from us. Or maybe he is just upset about losing Sirius Black and having to deal with the dementors. Anyways, I'll get going. I think I might drop by the kids to say hello. I'll let you know if I find this Dawes woman." With a final wave, she disapparated, leaving Andromeda to sip her tea alone.

She didn't know what she would do when she found Jennifer Dawes. If she found Jennifer Dawes, she corrected herself. It was highly possible that she was out of country or changed her last name by marriage. What would she do if she found her? Tell her that Sirius Black is innocent and that she should leave everything else and come back to him because he was in love with her? What if she had a family? What if she was too scared to hear Sirius' name? Andromeda knew she had no right to bring up what was obviously a bad memory for her. It is never a happy occasion when you find out your boyfriend is a convicted mass-murderer and a Death Eater.

Still, she would try to gather information about her. And if she was still single, she would try to convince her about Sirius' innocence. It was funny that Andromeda was thinking of convincing someone else of Sirius' innocence when she wasn't fully convinced herself. If she could convince her, she would set up a meeting between the two. They had to do the rest for themselves.

The worst part was that she had to do all these in utmost secrecy.

Unless Sirius caught the traitor Pettigrew first and he was cleared.

…...

_Hey Tonks,_

_How are you doing? We haven't met for a long time, but I'm sure you still remember the time we had together. I'm really sorry it didn't work out, but do you think we could give it another try? How about I take you out to lunch tomorrow? Do you still have that red dress you wore at the Higgins' party? You should definitely wear that. Strawberry blond hair goes nicely with that dress. I'll be at your house by twelve, okay?_

_Love_

_Darren Corner_

_Darren,_

_I don't have that dress anymore and if you don't want a couple of boiled eggs to be pushed up your arsehole, you better not come anywhere near my house._

_And in case you didn't get the hint, I'm not going to lunch with you. I have plans for lunch with a very handsome, smart and charming guy. Not to mention he doesn't always 'forget' to bring his wallet on dates._

_N. Tonks_

"Can I borrow Hedwig, Harry? Thanks." She wasn't sure Harry even heard the question, but she knew he would say yes, so she didn't bother to wake him up and went on to the stand that held Hedwig.

_Red dress and strawberry blond, my arse. _She thought with disgust. It was in her third year, she bought the dress without telling her mother because she would never approve of it. She later regretted the decision when all the guys in the party eyed her like a delicious piece of meat and the girls gave her looks that clearly screamed "SLUT!" She wanted to be noticed as more than the troublesome tomboy but she was feeling uneasy at this new kind of attention she was getting. Darren Corner asked her out and within five minutes, he pulled her to a nearby empty room and kissed her. It wasn't her first kiss and she didn't enjoy it very much. But before she could say anything, Darren was grabbing her breasts over the a-bit-too-revealing dress.

Now, she didn't mind being touched by a guy, but she always thought it would be sweet and a moment to savour. What Darren was doing was, to put it simply, taking advantage of her. She tried to push him away but the slightly drunk boy's hand was now travelling rapidly downwards and was trying to undress her. Gritting her teeth, she kneed him in the groin and without wasting a second; she stormed out of the room, fuming in anger, not giving a damn that the state of her dress was worse than ever. The only good that came out of that was that she learnt that getting attention is not as good as she thought.

"And he has the nerve to ask me out." She muttered under her breath. Unfortunately, Harry, who was dozing off next to her, woke up at her movements and looked at her questioningly. Considering him for a moment, she handed him the letter from Darren.

"Well, he is a bit demanding. Seems to have assumed you'd say yes. So what did you say?" He asked after reading it. He hoped she told no, mainly because this one didn't seem like a decent guy. Another reason was that if she said yes and they got together, Harry wouldn't get to spend much time with her.

"Of course I said him to go fuck himself. First time he asked me out he was trying to get into my pants within five minutes. Kicked his balls before I came home." She said with a satisfied voice. For some strange reason, Harry wanted to hurt the guy himself; badly. He told himself he just hated people who harassed his friends. But the phrases 'break his hands' and 'favourite girl' were jumping at his mind.

"Um... how do you know he er… forgets to bring his wallet to dates then? Did you go out with him again?"

"Hell no! I heard other girls gossiping about him. I met him and was done with him that day. I know what you were thinking and you're right. Call me a slut, but I was tired of being noticed just as the troublemaker kid who can change her nose. I wanted someone to notice me as a girl. Don't think I'm still like that. I do date men, but I don't think I want that kind of attention anymore. Come to think of it, I haven't dated for a while. In fact, the last time I dated was in Halloween in your first year. That date was the reason I was shocked to death when I saw that troll. And of course, my hero Harry came to save me from the big bad troll!" she ended dramatically, placing a sloppy kiss on a reluctant Harry's red cheek.

He would die before he admitted it to her, but when she said that, he felt rather proud of himself.

…

Maybe this wasn't a very good idea, after all. Maybe he was lying about it all. Maybe he is really a Death Eater and probably she was going to be killed tonight. She promised not to go without a fight.

She was standing in a deserted street in London. She was supposed to meet a convicted mass-murderer. It was getting late and the only living thing she spotted was a black dog that went past her a minute before. If he failed to show up in-

"You've lost weight." A raspy voice said from behind her. If it was someone else, they would probably be shocked to death or screamed. Andromeda, however, swiftly pointed her wand at the man. He raised his hand as a peaceful gesture.

"No need to get twitchy. Here, take my wand. I'll even turn my pockets so that you know I don't have a spare wand. Happy?"

"Turn around." She ordered coolly. He obliged. She pressed her wand to his neck and asked, "What was the name you wanted to give Nymphadora?"

Without missing a beat, he replied, "I didn't want to give any names to her." This was a technique Andromeda taught him when he joined the Order. If someone was impersonating you, it was possible to search your memory and look for specific things you did. However, they couldn't find an answer if you didn't do it. Only the real person could answer that sort of security questions. It wasn't widely used because not many people knew it and most of the ones who did were from Slytherin.

"So what's your story?" she asked him.

"You have to swear you won't tell this to anyone until I say so."

"You aren't in a position to demand."

"Please Meda. You are the only one I trust." He said pleadingly, his rough voice cracking. Andromeda looked into his eyes for a long time, as if trying to read what was beneath, but the only thing she found was a terrifying hollowness.

"Start talking." She ordered.

And Sirius did. He told her everything. Being an animagus to help Remus, the Potters offering him to be their secret keeper, his brilliant twist in the plan, Pettigrew accepting the position after being assured no one else would know about it and finally that fateful night when he lost everyone and everything he loved. He told her how Crouch threw him to Azkaban without a trial. He skipped his time in Azkaban and went to the visit of Fudge, seeing the traitor in the newspaper with the Weasleys, and finally breaking out of the hellhole to avenge the deaths of his best friends.

"You aren't lying, are you?" Andromeda whispered with a hint of pleading in her voice. Sirius shook his head and then swore an oath for her. No sooner than he finished the oath, she pulled him to a fierce embrace. Sirius returned it with, if possible, more energy.

"I've missed you Meda." He said in a croaked voice.

The two Blacks mourned for everyone they lost, including each other on that night. After a long comfortable silence, Andromeda asked, "So you want to kill Pettigrew?"

"I do. And his death would be painful." Sirius replied with a dangerous growl that somewhat scared Andromeda.

"Have you considered handing him over? That way you can have a good shot at getting your name cleared."

Sirius looked at her stupidly for a moment, and then, for the first time in twelve years, he smiled. "Thanks Meda, you're a lifesaver."

"That's what family is for, you mutt!"

…

Miles away, a small, watery-eyed man was weeping in the smelly attic. Peter Pettigrew knew Sirius Black was on the run, and he would most definitely come after him. His only solace was the knowledge that Sirius had no way of knowing where he was.

From what that Arthur Weasley discussed with his fat wife, he was after Harry Potter. Most probably trying to get the boy to live with his godfather. Not that he gave a damn to where the boy lived, but if he did spend more time around Sirius, there was always a danger for Peter to be recognised. That would definitely not go well. He was supposed to be dead. He was quite lucky that the Weasley twins didn't come across the Marauder's Map yet. It wouldn't take them long to discover that a second person was sharing the bed with their youngest brother.

Two years ago, he felt some regret to what he had done. Lily was never anything but kind to him, and James always helped him. Sirius pulled harsh pranks on him, but he was always there when he needed him. And now the Dark Lord was dead, Peter was left alone, friendless, not daring to live as a human.

His thoughts changed when he came to know that the Dark Lord wasn't totally gone. He heard what Harry Potter discussed with Neville Longbottom about Voldemort going after the Philosopher's Stone. He was initially scared out of his wits at the thought of escaping all the Death Eaters and Voldemort himself when he came back to power, but then he thought of the place where he spent most of his time.

In the same dorm as Harry Potter.

What more could the Dark Lord ask for when he would come back, than the boy who destroyed him? Peter was in the perfect position. He would bide his time until the Dark Lord came back, and then he would return with an unconscious Harry Potter.

He would be the most honoured Death Eater.

He had enough of being the tag-along with the mighty James Potter and Sirius Black, being the subject of their jokes. He would never go near the werewolf if James and Sirius didn't. And there was Lily Evans, the pretty bitch who wouldn't even look at him twice. He wasn't good enough for them.

Now he was better than all of them.

_A/N: Reviews are like fire to my cauldron. More you review, quicker I try to update. This was not one of my favourite chapters, you can think of it more as a filler._

_And for the story's sake, the twins didn't have their hands on the map._


	14. Dangerous Objects

_A/N: tseuG- I realize that Andromeda is being mentioned too much, but that is because Harry's activities coincide a lot with canon at this point of the story. Rather that rewriting them all, I wanted to develop other important characters. But don't worry, Harry will be back to focus once I've dealt with the Tonks women. Thanks for the review._

**14. Friendly Slytherins and Dangerous Objects**

Ted Tonks was a bit intrigued. It was not uncommon for Andromeda to talk about James, but she rarely spoke of Sirius Black after he was shipped off to Azkaban; and even after Sirius broke out, his wife didn't mention him other than the occasion when Harry asked Dora about him. So he was giving her the utmost attention (not that he ignored her normally) when she started a conversation after dinner.

"Today I remembered something Sirius told me after they graduated."

"Um… what's that dear?" he asked, quite bewildered at the sudden mention of her cousin.

"You remember there was a group named the Marauders while we were at Hogwarts?"

Ted smiled fondly. "How couldn't I? Quite the group it was, led by James Potter and Sirius Black, the most popular pranksters of the decade. What about them?"

"Well, shortly before graduation, they played out an act in front of Filch, and that useless squib fell on their bait and confiscated, according to Sirius, 'A Priceless Treasure'."

"Uh… they wanted this treasure to be confiscated? But why? And what was it anyway? A pranking instrument?" he asked.

"Yes, they intended this treasure to be found by a future generation of pranksters, so they let it be confiscated. And the treasure is a map. You can call it a pranking instrument, but it was dead useful, if what I heard was true."

"A map? Of what?" he asked, intrigued.

"Of Hogwarts. It shows all the hidden passage and tunnels inside it, and the tunnels leading out of Hogwarts."

"Wow! That's some serious complicated magic. They made it while they were in school?"

"Yes, in their fifth year, to be exact. After all, three of them were the brightest students of their year. And when Lily started going out with James, she helped to improve some stuff too. But it doesn't just show the way, it also shows the people inside the castle, and the best thing is, even if you are under polyjuice, or hidden in some other way, say under an invisibility cloak or in an animagus form, it still shows your real identity."

Ted's jaws were hanging. How on earth did four fifth years manage to create something like that? He understood how useful that item could be for a prankster. It could warn you of any dangers or obstacles, and show you a way without them.

"Good Merlin! I wonder what they could be if they didn't invest most of their time in pranks."

They sat in a comfortable silence for a few seconds, and then Ted asked, "This is indeed very interesting, but was there any reason you remembered it?"

Andromeda looked a bit grim before answering, "I was just thinking of a way Dora and Harry could go without passing the dementors that would guard Hogwarts."

Ted nodded gravely. The day before, Andromeda has told Harry about the dementors without going in detail about the kiss, and he promised to avoid them whenever possible. He said he wasn't in a hurry to find out his worst memory, and Ted agreed wholeheartedly. He had enough bad memories for a lifetime. He didn't need to refresh his memory with the help of a dementor.

Suddenly there was a noise from the next room that sounded very much like someone losing their footing.

"Looks like Nymphadora overheard our conversation." He said, with a small frown. Andromeda gave him an impish smile which he found awfully distracting.

Nymphadora could wait. He had a better company now.

In the next room, Tonks sighed as a sudden silence fell from her parent's room. A silencing charm. Either they were talking about something confidential, or they were…

"Ugh! I don't want to think about it!" she said loudly, trying to push disturbing images out of her mind. She focused on what she overheard. Filch's office was a place she would have to visit very soon.

What she didn't know was her mother intended her to overhear their conversation.

….

"HARRY!"

"Wake up Harry!"

"Sue, can you do an aguamenti charm?"

"AGUAMENTI!"

Harry woke up, feeling very cold.

"Wha… what happened? Is it you, Sue? Why is my hair wet?"

Everyone sighed in relief. Tonks almost felt like crying. Harry passed out after a dementor came in their compartment and tried to smell Sirius Black… or something like that.

There was a cough and the grey haired new Defence professor came back to the compartment.

"Are you okay Harry?" he asked quietly. Harry looked up at the newcomer, wondering how he knew his name and asked, "Err… I'm okay, but who are you?"

Hermione looked scandalized, but the newcomer smiled before introducing himself. "My name is Remus Lupin. I'll be your new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. Now, please have this." He handed him a large bar of chocolate.

Harry remembered Andromeda saying that chocolate helped to cope with the after-effects of encounter with a dementor. Taking the bar of chocolate, he bit it, and comfortable warmth filled him. He thanked Professor Lupin and offered the rest to Tonks and Susan, who were standing on either side of him.

"You need it Harry, just eat it." Susan said and Tonks nodded. Not wanting to get on the bad side of the witches, he ate the whole slab and gave a fake burp for added effect. Both girls giggled and Professor Lupin chuckled.

"I'll leave you for now. We will reach Hogsmead in half an hour, so you might want to change to your robes quickly." He left the compartment.

"Good bloke, that one." Tonks commented. Hermione looked like she wanted to say something, but she hold her tongue.

After a few moments of silence, he asked them quietly, "Did anyone else faint?"

The witches exchanged dark looks and Tonks said, "No. Now shut up before that dementor looks friendly next to me."

"Never gonna happen." Harry mumbled, causing his friends to look at him worriedly.

"I heard a woman screaming. Wonder who it is." He whispered to himself.

….

"You fainted, Potter? Is Weasley telling the truth? You actually fainted?" Malfoy said in a gleeful voice.

"Yeah, he fainted, Malfoy. Now go to a corner and masturbate over it." Tonks said with venom at the now spluttering boy, and not waiting for a reply, she dragged Harry to the horseless carriages, thinking of what Harry said in the compartment. A woman's scream. She had no idea what bad memories Harry had with a screaming woman, maybe his aunt screaming at him? Though a part of her was curious to know what he heard, the other part firmly decided that he could live without knowing it. It was bad enough that she had to relieve the most horrible things that happened to her.

"What's your rate, honey? Heard you let Harper fuck you for free." A Slytherin jeered.

"How about you take the three of us together and we'll give you a nice tip, yeah?" another called.

"James… and Lily… they are… gone." A sobbing woman was telling her mother.

"You dare to look at my boyfriend? _Diffindo!_" she screamed as a red light caused a thin cut in her thigh.

"That's only because you can look like their best fantasy in bed! What else would a bloke date you for?"

_SNAP OUT OF IT!_

With great difficulty, she focused on the entrance to the Great Hall. She didn't notice they have reached here already. A nudge from her side turned her attention to Harry, who was looking at her questioningly, silently asking her about her distracted behaviour. She gave him an easy smile to show it was nothing. He didn't look convinced but didn't pursue the subject any further. With brief smiles, Tonks, Susan and Hannah parted ways with the Gryffindor, where the unusually serious twins were sitting beside a paler-than-normal Ginny.

"Are you alright, Ginny?" Harry asked once he reached the table. Said girl nodded but Fred said in a low voice, "The dementor affected her badly. Shaking like mad, she was." George silently nodded in agreement. Harry could imagine what memories the young redhead had to revisit, considering what happened in her first year. _But she didn't faint like you,_ a voice in his head said bitterly.

….

"I'm really excited Harry, I read about the subject and it seemed very interesting to me. Are you excited too?" Hermione asked, slightly breathless. Harry chuckled at the witch's enthusiasm over a new subject. Gryffindors and Slytherins third years had their very first Arithmancy class in ten minutes. Harry and Hermione were the only Gryffindors from their year to take the subject.

"Yeah, I am a bit excited, I guess. Nowhere near you, though." He said with a laugh and Hermione blushed a bit. Thankfully, she didn't say any more about Arithmancy as they hurried down the corridor that contained the Arithmancy classroom.

Arithmancy, as it turned out, wasn't a very popular subject. Four Slytherin students were already seated when they entered. Harry knew Millicent Bulstrode and Theodre Nott from last year's Duel Club (which discouraged him to join the various other clubs, by the way). The other two, Harry was sure, were called Tracey Davis and Daphne Greengrass. The members of the two rival houses didn't talk with each other, and soon Professor Vector entered the classroom.

"Good morning, students. Welcome to your Arithmancy class. My name is Septima Vector. Please stand up one by one and state your names, it's better to get acquainted before starting the class.

As they all did, Professor Vector checked a register, and apparently satisfied, she started.

"I believe you all have attended your Ancient Runes class? Yes? Good. Arithmancy is deeply connected to runes. As you know, the runes are a language. In your Ancient Runes class, you will be taught how to make sense with random runes strung together. In Arithmancy, you will learn how to manipulate these runes to set up wards, how to calculate with the runes, which will help you to analyse many forms of magic.

Now let us go back to the history of Arithmancy. As you may know, at ancient times, magic wasn't the same as now. It took really powerful wizards to set up wards, which were not very complex, and the spells were far more straightforward than it is now. But at the same time, it was extremely hard to counter a curse or slip though wards because people had little idea about how magic worked. Magic was mostly based on power than anything else, and powerful wizards had godlike images to the rest of the populace.

Then an alchemist named Archimedes came around and did extensive study on both muggle science and magic. He wrote down a particular set of runes on his cupboard in an attempt to stop his servant from stealing. He had destroyed many cupboards and locked many of them permanently, but one day, while taking a bath, he wrote them out again, and when he went to test the cupboard, to his surprise, the wards were perfect. In his excitement, he was said to run naked on the street screaming 'EUREKA!', but that might be another story muggles cooked up. So that was the beginning of Arithmancy.

Now, I will give you a simple task to do. Since we have the advantage of having an even number of students, you will work in pairs, and find out the rune composition of one simplespell. One of you will cast the spell while the other will jab their wand at the incoming spell, and say _'Enodo' _which will break down the spell into smaller components. If you need help, you can ask me."

Harry was paired with Tracey Davis and they were to find out the composition of the disarming hex. Once they got past the general awkwardness of a Gryffindor working with a Slytherin, Harry enjoyed the lesson. Davis was a bit slow to cast, but she was intelligent. She even smiled at Harry when they finished the analysis before anyone else could. Hermione and Daphne Greengrass, who were analysing the leviation charm, finished about a minute later, but Nott and Bulstrode were taking forever to breakdown the Aguamenti charm, and were both dripping wet. Professor Vector finally told them to stop and announced that both the other groups have done their analysis perfectly. She, however, warned them not to loosen up as this was just the first class. She listed down a lot of spells, and, to Harry's bemusement, she asked them to find out their compositions as homework.

"I was actually starting to like her." Davis muttered, and Harry snorted quietly. She looked at him half-irritated, half-amused.

"That was what I was going to say." Harry said with a grin.

"Okay students, class dismissed. Don't forget the homework." The middle aged professor told them, before herding them out of the room.

"See you, Potter." Tracey Davis called at Harry, to general surprise, as they parted for their respective common rooms.

"A Slytherin is talking to you? How come, Harry?" Hermione asked once they were out of earshot. Harry shrugged.

"Dunno, she is nice enough for a Slytherin." He said, and smirked as Hermione's mouth became a perfect 'O'.

…

Two floors above, a certain Nymphadora Tonks was cursing heavily. Professor Flitwick had given them an immense load of homework, and when she tried to run away as fast as she could, she tripped over herself, and her bag spilled out all of its contents, including her ink bottle, to the floor. Ignoring the words of sympathy from the Fat Friar, who was floating beside her, she was trying to calm down and pick up all the books and put them back into her bag, but a 'meow' alarmed her, and before she could run again-

"Ink on the floor! You nasty girl, befouling the castle! Come to my office right now." Filch the caretaker growled menacingly at her.

She tried to explain that it was an accident, but the stupid squib would have none of it. Resignedly, she followed him to the gloomy office.

"Destruction of school property… ah! Here it is." The caretaker was muttering audibly.

"Destruction of school property? I spilled ink on the-"

CRASH!

"PEEVES! I will catch you this time!" he roared before running off to investigate, the cat following him faithfully.

She sighed in relief, at least now she could escape. No sooner the thought came to her mind, she spotted a box in the corner, labelled 'Confiscated and Highly Dangerous'. Curious, she opened the box to find an old piece of parchment. She thought about leaving it alone, but then a voice came to her memory.

'_They intended this treasure to be found by a future generation of pranksters, so they let it be confiscated. And the treasure is a map.'_

Could this be it? It looked old enough to be from James' school time, and it was confiscated as highly dangerous. Maybe there was a way to activate it. Thinking fast, she picked up the piece of parchment and turned to leave.

The door flew open.


	15. Lonely Marauder

_A/N: Thanks to __**Slytherin66 **__for the in-depth chats about various prospects of the story, and providing some interesting insights to the characters. Also, I have a request to you guys. Please read the A/N at the bottom._

**15. Lonely Marauder**

The door flew open.

The Weasley twins were laughing over some joke they shared, and they didn't notice Tonks hastily putting away the parchment in her pockets.

"Oh, hello Tonks." One of the twins greeted her.

"Fancy meeting you in Filch's filthy office." Said the other.

"So what mortal offense did you commit-"

"-to deserve the unpleasant visit-"

"-at the pus- I mean cat lover's office?"

Tonks sighed dramatically before answering, "Well, apparently I've been destroying school property, or so says that pussy. What did you guys do?"

"Ah, you see-"

"We decided to banish some metal armours at Peeves-"

"But Filch didn't find that as funny as we intended it to be-"

"And he's blaming us for creating havoc, funnily enough-"

"So here we are, awaiting our disembowelment-"

"And being hanged at the wrists from the ceiling-"

"-with a shiny, polished chain, no less."

Tonks flashed a winning smile at them. "Well, don't let me hold you up from mourning at the last moments of your life. I think Filch's forgot about me, so I'll see you 'round, gents!" with that, she walked out, smirking at the twins' outraged expressions.

Once she reached her dorm safely, Hestia grabbed her by the shoulder and pushed her to her bed, and proceeded to tell her how she and Edward had sex for the first time. Tonks was happy for her friends, of course, but she was slightly irritated at Hestia's timing, because she really wanted to study the parchment that may or may not be the map she heard of. For the moment, however, she had no choice but to listen to Hestia as she described their foreplay in disturbing detail.

…

"The dementors are coming, Potter!" Malfoy called at him, while Parkinson pretended to faint.

"Hey Greengrass, can you lend your glasses to Draco? He is starting to see imaginary things." He shot back, and Daphne just rolled her eyes at him. She and Tracey Davis have become quite friendly with Harry after a couple of Arithmancy classes together.

"What is happening here?" The silky voice of Severus Snape came out of nowhere and immediately Draco started listing off a number of offenses Harry had never even thought of doing. Not paying any heed to the Gryffindors' protests, Snape docked off thirty points from Harry.

"You might be making a mistake, Severus."

Everyone turned around to see Professor Lupin walking towards the gathered crowd.

"What's that, Lupin?" Snape hissed with venom.

"I believe Mr. Malfoy's accusations were false, as I fortunately happened to be watching their little bickering. So you'll get the thirty points back, Harry, and Mr. Malfoy is to serve a detention with me this evening at seven o' clock. Off you go, now." he finished at the crowd in general.

Harry could distinctly hear "my father will hear about it" from Malfoy.

"Running off to daddy, Draco?" Harry called after him. Malfoy threw him a look of pure hatred before going off with a huff.

"You should stop being childish, Potter." Tracey Davis chided him, but she was smiling.

"Good to see you too, Tracey." He flashed a grin at her, before she shook her head amusedly at him and went away.

"That is admirable, Harry."

He turned around to find Professor Lupin smiling at him.

"Er… what are you talking about, Professor?" he asked, confused.

"Making friends with people from other houses, especially Slytherin. Your mother would have been proud."

"You… you knew her?" he asked, a bit eagerly.

"I did. Now off you go, your friends must be waiting for you."

He was disappointed not getting any details about his mother from his Defence professor, but was glad to know that one more person cared enough to stand up for him. For a boy like him, it was always a pleasant surprise.

He spotted Tonks walking distractedly and approached her.

"What's up Nymphie-Poo?" he asked, once closed enough to her. Tonks turned to him with horror.

"What did'ya call me?" she said, thunderstruck. Harry laughed at her expression.

"Oh come on, you can't say it's not cute." He teased.

"Don't call me that again!" she said hotly, causing Harry to laugh harder. She huffed in annoyance and turned away from him, arms crossed at her chest.

"Aaw, is Ickle Nymmie mad at me?" he said with barely controlled voice. She gave him a filthy look.

"Watch it mister, just because I don't tell you anything doesn't mean you get to show your creativity with my name. So if you want to have children in future, you better stop making up ridiculous names."

Harry was almost rolling on the floor with laughter by this point. With a great effort, he stood up and managed to say, "Okay, I won't. Happy now?" when she didn't respond, he stopped laughing and poked her in the ribs. She, in turn, stuck out her tongue at him.

"So what were you doing?" he finally asked.

"Not telling." She mumbled, pouting.

"Please?"

She shook her head stubbornly. He sighed and said, "Okay, I guess I can live without knowing."

She immediately said, "Alright, I was bluffing. So what do you know about the Marauder's Map?"

...

"UGH! This is frustrating!" Susan complained. The other two nodded in sympathy.

It has been five days Tonks found the supposed-to-be-Marauder's-Map, and after trying to activate it for three by herself she included Harry in. (She planned on surprising Harry by knowing where he was, but that was sadly not to happen). Harry had the brilliant idea of applying Arithmancy. He got some results, but understood none of them. Tonks didn't ever take Arithmancy, so she settled to pestering Harry with "What you got?" every five minutes or so. After a few more hours, Harry gave in as it was getting too late (almost midnight). The next day, he called Susan, who also had Arithmancy, for help. Susan made her first breakthrough not by Arithmancy, but by writing on it. From the colourful replies the map gave, they were at least sure that it was, indeed, the fabled Map. With the help of some advanced Arithmancy books from the Restricted Section (permission coaxed out of Professor Vector by Harry, claiming that he had a insatiable interest in the revealing and analysing sections) they managed to find that the Map was pass-phrase protected, and with some useful spell from Tonks, they came to the conclusion that the pass-phrase was ten words long. Now it was only a matter of guessing it.

As it turned out, however, guessing was not as easy as it sounds.

"Please show yourself, because I intend to cause some trouble." Tried Harry. Tonks shook her head.

"You think pranksters would say please to a map?" Harry scowled.

"I wish to see you because I am up to no good." Tried Susan.

"Too long." Said Harry, glumly.

"I swear you I am up to no good?" Tonks said tiredly. She was already starting to lose hope of ever finding the pass-phrase. At this rate-

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." Harry said, his almost-hundredth try.

With the collective gasps of the three teens, words began to form in the map.

_Welcome, rules-breakers of Hogwarts. To activate the map, tap your wand and say the pass phrase again. To clear it, say 'Mischief Managed' and tap again. Happy pranking._

The faces that held exhaustion a moment ago, shone with happiness and victory. Without wasting further time, Harry followed the instruction, and lines started forming from where he touched his wand.

Later that day, Remus Lupin was walking past the Great Hall when he thought he heard someone say the word 'Marauders'. He looked around to see two Hufflepuff girls talking excitedly. They couldn't possibly know about the Marauders, he thought. He probably heard something else that sounded like it.

The Marauders. Four best friends who were the coolest pranksters of the school.

The words sounded bitter even in his head. Two killed, one turned traitor, and one turned a schoolteacher. Coolest pranksters, indeed.

He would be lying if he said he didn't miss the marauders. In fact, he missed them terribly. Apart from his parents, they were the first and amongst the very few that accepted him despite his condition. He remembered that they remained inseparable at school and even in holidays. He, however, didn't expect them to remain so after school. The real world did not care about old friends or sentiments. The real world prevented werewolves from getting a decent job. For months after graduation, he applied for jobs, but his 'furry little problem' made sure that he was deprived from any respectable jobs. He knew there was no point in hiding his identity, magical equivalents of CV will always show mentionable physical conditions. Of course, if he went to Dumbledore, he might've found a way to hide it, but his employees would be bound to be suspicious if he became ill after every full moon. And he refused to take help from his friends, either. He would feel inferior if he did, and pride was the only thing the ex-Gryffindor possessed a lot.

As he worked in a muggle company named Grunnings, he wasn't satisfied by any means. The muggle pound was a weaker currency than galleons, and he barely managed to live on, but it was better than the homeless unemployed werewolf in the magical community. Sometimes he considered killing himself, but he was too afraid to die like this. He wanted to die in a fight, where he fought for something he believed in. He didn't want to die because he was too miserable.

However, a few months after Vernon Dursley, the ex-manager bought over Grunnings, (he disliked the man, and couldn't shake off the idea that he heard the name somewhere in the magical community) the whole building was burned down in a supposed gas leak. That night, he went to a wizard's pub for some firewhiskey, brooding over his recent unemployment, when he heard the rumours that the fire might actually have been magical, he asked an eager gossiper why a wizard would bother a muggle office, the guy looked at him like he was a five year old and said, "Don't you hear anything? The owner is the only relative of the boy."

"What boy?" he asked.

"The Boy Who Lived. Harry Potter."

He felt like someone slapped him across the face.

Harry Potter. He had forgotten about him. And Vernon Dursley is Lily's brother-in-law. Then he realized where young Harry lived. After Black's betrayal and the murder of the Potters, (which devastated him) he asked Dumbledore his address. He wanted to visit Harry and be a part of his life that sustained such losses as a mere infant. But Dumbledore insisted on keeping the address a secret. After a few months, he stopped asking, and after another year of incredibly hard work in Grunnings, he forgot about Harry. He trusted Dumbledore to keep him safe.

When he saw the advertisement in the Daily Prophet about the vacancy of the DADA post at Hogwarts, he immediately applied, and Albus hired him almost instantly. Not only would he get a handsome payroll, he would also get a chance to watch over Harry, (he owed him that after forgetting about him for so many years) and possibly protect him from Sirius Black.

When he met Harry, he expected him to be arrogant like James or charming and hot-headed like Lily, but all he saw was a polite boy who looked content, but had some deep, dark look behind those glasses.

At first he cursed Dumbledore, because obviously Harry didn't have a good childhood (he could only guess how Vernon Dursley treated him, and from what Lily said, Petunia was no fan of magic) but then he thought that it was a remarkable feat that Harry wasn't attacked by Death Eaters or by anyone else, for that matter. He knew that if he was the one protecting Harry, it was highly possible for a massive Death Eater raid and he wouldn't have been able to save Harry.

His heart broke when the boy asked if he knew Lily. He wanted to sit with him all day and tell him all the stories of his parents, but as a teacher, he couldn't do that, unless he wanted to be accused of favouritism. Of course, he cared for Harry, but he really couldn't afford to be unemployed at the moment.

Sighing, he went to prepare for the next class.

...

Harry was watching the Marauder's map with wonder. After they worked out how to use the map, Harry kept it most of the time. Of course, he offered the other two to keep it, but Susan said she didn't really need it, as she wasn't as mischievous as Harry or Tonks (both of them begged to differ on that point) and Tonks said that since Harry found the pass phrase, he should keep it, and she could borrow anytime she needed it.

He watched two dots labelled 'Harry Potter' and 'Susan Bones' beside the lake. An inch apart, 'Nymphadora Tonks' was with 'Hestia Jones' and 'Edward Becker'. He spied Neville and Hannah studying together in the library, accompanied by 'Terry Boot' and 'Padma Patil'. This was fun, he thought. He looked at the Slytherin common room to see Snape surrounded by 'Marcus Flint' and 'Charles Avery'. 'Daphne Greengrass' was going towards 'Tracey Davis'. His eyes travelled to the Headmaster's office, where 'Albus Dumbledore' was apparently having a meeting with 'Minerva McGonagall' and 'Remus Lupin'. 'Rubeus Hagrid' was-

"Are you gonna stare at that thing all day long?" asked Susan, quite amused. Harry blushed a bit.

"Look Neville and Hannah are studying together. Dora reckons they fancy each other. What do you think?"

Susan looked thoughtful for a moment before replying, "I guess they do. Hannah definitely talks a lot about Neville, though she says they are just good friends. They are cute together, though." She added with a giggle, and Harry chuckled. They indeed were cute together.

"Do you fancy anyone, Harry?" Susan asked after a few moments.

"No. You?" he replied, but purple hairs and large eyes flashed in his mind. He quickly put away the stray thought.

"Uh... I'm not sure. I think I kinda like Dean Thomas. He is nice and funny, but I'm not sure if he'll like me back." She blushed deeply. Harry laughed at the girl he considered his sister. Dean was a nice guy, and Susan was quite good looking, too. He could always give Dean a prod in the right direction.

"Tell you what, Sue; I can drop small hints to Dean about how Susan Bones looks like she needs some company-"

"HARRY NO!" Susan wailed, wildly waving her arms and Harry laughed at her panic.

"Why though? Don't you want something to happen? I'm sure Dean will appreciate you properly. You are quite the witch, Miss Bones." He said with a wink. Susan blushed again.

"Thank you Mr Potter, but I am not ready to date right now. Maybe later, I'll tell you, and you can drop your hints. Okay?" Harry smiled and nodded. Falling into a comfortable silence, Harry turned back to spying people in the map.

Susan watched him looking at the map with her thoughts still on their recent conversation. She trusted Harry to keep her secret crush between them, because she didn't want to deal with-

Harry suddenly became tensed beside her, his eyes fixed at a point in the map. Then, he looked at his right and shouted, "DORA!"

_A/N: I am quite doubtful about the quality of the summary of this story. I usually use an extract from the story as the summary. So I'd like it if you let me know your opinion of the current summary, or better still, which lines would you want to be the summary to make it interesting and... eye-catching, perhaps? Thank you for your support!_

_Oh, credits to __**Teufel1987**__ for the 'Nymphie-Poo' name._


	16. Coming Clean

**16. Coming Clean**

_Dear Meda,_

_I think you better come clean with Dora and Harry. I think they already have the map, and Harry spotted me when I was drinking water from the lake. Of course, I escaped pretty quickly, and since they don't know about my animagus form, they probably didn't suspect the dog that ran away from them. But if they decide to hand over the map to Dumbledore or some other teacher, I can't stay here anymore. Just to be safe, I'm bunking at the boundary of Hogsmeade._

_On a different note, I ran out of ink. Mind sending another bottle?_

_And did I mention you are the best cook ever?_

_Padfoot_

Andromeda frowned. How come she didn't see this coming? Of course the map would show Sirius as well. She wanted Dora to get it because it was practically Harry's inheritance. There was also the fact that it would be easier to catch Pettigrew if he was indeed at Hogwarts in his rat form. She didn't want to approach the children or anyone else before she had solid proof on Sirius' innocence, but now she didn't have any choice. She would have to meet Harry and Dora in their Hogsmeade weekend and explain everything. Releasing a sigh, she picked up a piece of parchment and started writing.

...

Harry Potter was hiding behind a suit of armours. He was waiting. For one Nymphadora Tonks, to be exact. He had stalked her in his map, and found that she was coming out with a couple of others from the Hufflepuff common room. He was getting impatient at the slow pace of her dot on the map, but he waited.

After five minutes, he heard the sound of her laughter. He smiled, thinking how cute dimples would form on her cheeks when she laughed, her usually large eyes getting smaller, but shining with humour. Shaking his head in an attempt to concentrate on the task at hand, he saw that she had already crossed the statue he was hiding behind. Peeking from the statue, he was greeted with the view of her shapely buttocks.

_I AM NOT CHECKING HER OUT!_ He mentally shouted at himself.

Wrapping himself with his Invisibility Cloak, he followed her. He had a crazy idea of grabbing her from behind, just to surprise her, but he knew better. Dora was totally unpredictable when surprised. There was a high possibility of getting cursed if he did that. So he just whispered in her ear, "It's me, Harry. I need to talk to you. In private."

She nearly jumped out of her skin, but at the last moment, she sneezed violently and apologized to her friends, who were alarmed as well.

"Er... you guys go on. I just remembered I left something in the dorms. Go on, I'll be there in a jiffy."

She turned and stretched a hand as if trying to grab something out of the air, and getting the hint, Harry placed a hand on hers. She dragged him inside the Hufflepuff common room, and with a levitation charm, she brought him to her now-empty room.

"Blimey Harry, what was so urgent that you had to invisibly snatch me away from my friends? If I didn't know better I'd think you were about to drag me to a broom cupboard and shag-"

"Alright, I get it! No need to go there." Harry said with a glare, his face bright red. Tonks just laughed and then looked at him questioningly.

"Andromeda sent me a letter."

"Okay. So what did she write?" she asked curiously. It wasn't uncommon of her mother to write to Harry. In fact, she wrote him at least once a month.

He showed her the letter.

_Dear Harry._

_I hear you had an exciting first week? Not that I'm surprised. Hope you aren't going to have the usual troublesome year._

_I came to know that you got your hands on a special map. No. Dora didn't tell me, I have other sources. But don't worry. I'm not having you stalked. I also heard you were close to Sirius Black recently? This time, however, it was Dora who told me that._

_Now I don't want you to panic about this. And I don't want you to go to a teacher with the map. I do want to catch the culprit, but first, there is something you need to know. Can you spare about an hour in your Hogsmeade weekend? I understand you might have plans with your friends, but this is really important. Be at the Three Broomsticks at 3pm. Bring along Dora, but no one else._

_Love from,_

_Andromeda Tonks_

"Any idea what she wants to tell us about?" Harry asked, and Tonks shook her head.

"It sounds really important, though. She never interrupted my Hogsmeade weekends."

"So we should go." Harry stated.

"It's a date!" Tonks said brightly, causing the messy haired wizard to blush slightly.

As she said the words, it reminded her of the fact that she hasn't dated for about two years now, which had to be an outstanding feat for her. The highest she went without dating before his was about five months, after she had a bad break up with a jerk. The reason for this was she spent most of her time either with Harry or her friends, but she didn't mind spending time with Harry in the least. He was fun to be around and generally a sweetheart, not to mention the fact that it was too easy to make him imitate a tomato. Sometimes she found herself staring at him and admiring his emerald green eyes and his messy hair. She supposed it wouldn't be bad if she actually went to a date with him. Of course, he was too young for him, but he was one of the very few guys who cared about her for who she really was instead of who she could look like. Not to mention he was quite cute and had an endearing personality. _Hmm... wonder if he fancies someone... he should start dating by now._

"You should date someone." She blurted out before she realized what she was saying. Harry looked oddly at her and asked, "Why?"

"Well, you are thirteen and cute as hell and you should have some fun with the cute chicks in the castle. And since you have the map and the invisibility cloak, you shouldn't have trouble finding empty snogging spots-"

Harry's glare and red face made her giggle. He grabbed her by the shoulders (which were now at his chin level) and steered her out of the girl's dormitory of the Hufflepuff, (where they slid down together at the stairs) and went out to-

"Potter? What were you doing on the girl's dorm?" Professor Sprout asked, looking between Tonks and Harry, whose hand was still on her shoulders.

"I took him to show him a letter from mum that was a bit private." Tonks answered. Harry nodded, his mind noting the irony of the statement as it was actually the other way round.

"Why would you show him if it was private?" the Herbology teacher asked suspiciously.

"Well you see Professor; the letter was actually for me." Harry supplied this time. Sprout looked a bit confused.

"Let me get this straight, Miss Tonks' mother is sending a private letter for Mr Potter? Are you related?"

"Um... not really, Harry lives with us." Tonks said, while Harry nodded fervently. Professor Sprout nodded in understanding.

"Oh, I see. If that is the case, I am going to pretend I didn't see you coming out of the girl's dorm, Mr Potter, because it is against the rules for a male student to visit the female quarters, whatever the occasion. Next time, try to find another private location. Clear?" seeing them both nod, she turned and left. The two teens grinned at each other.

...

"Ready?" Tonks asked everyone. Getting affirmative nods from everyone, she grinned and led the way. The others wore expressions of nervous excitement on their faces. They were off to their first ever Hogsmeade weekend.

After lunch, they all approached the horseless carriages waiting for them. Filch was checking their name for those who were not allowed to visit. Thankfully, Harry had Andromeda's sign, who became his guardian once he fled from the Dursleys. The weather was quite pleasant and a cloudless sky lifted their moods. Tonks was acting as a guide and joking along with the others, but a large part of her mind was occupied by the upcoming meeting with Harry and her mother. She stole a glance at the raven-haired boy and saw him quite distracted.

The ride was so far quite enjoyable for Harry. His friends were excited for the trip, and so was he. But he was quite apprehensive of the important meeting he was going to have with Andromeda. She seemed to know about the map and that bothered him to no end. Not because she knew, but because somewhere he was careless enough to leak the knowledge about the map. He was lucky that only Andromeda knew about it, because he didn't want to lose the map to a teacher. He shuddered at the thought of Snape getting his long hands on it. Or worse, if somehow Sirius Black found it. Of course, he wouldn't know the pass-phrase, but if he could break out of Azkaban and break into Hogwarts, was it really impossible for him to break a pass-phrase? And if he had the map, he could stalk anyone, including him and Dora and his friends. He shivered a bit and pulled his jacket closer.

But the temperature has suddenly dropped and the carriage was coming to a halt. Feeling a sense of déjà vu, he quickly jumped out of the carriage before it stopped properly, and found himself face to face with a dementor. He heard a woman screaming from far away and there was a high pitched cold voice...

'_Stand aside, you silly girl... I said stand aside, now..." ordered the cold voice._

'_Not Harry, please no, I'll do anything. Please, not Harry!' the woman pleaded._

'_Stand aside, girl. This is my last warning.'_

'_Please no, not Harry, take me... kill me instead... please, have mercy... not Harry please, have mercy. Kill me instead... not Harry...'_

"Harry! Harry!"

He woke up with a thundering heart that was about to explode.

"Not her, please!" he whispered. Susan was rubbing circles on his back. He looked up to see Tonks looking worriedly at him. Without a word, he embraced her and tears fell off his eyes. Bewildered, Tonks hold him tightly, wondering what made the toughest boy she ever knew to cry. If it was his aunt-

"She was begging Voldemort to kill her and spare me. She died trying to protect me." He whispered between small sobs.

Tonks would have traded anything to make him forget that. No one deserved to hear their parents' dying words in front of the murderer. She suddenly felt her eyes burning and her throat constricted. She wanted to hold him until he forgot all his troubles, but she knew he had too many to forget. Instead, she wiped the tears from his face and pressed a kiss to his forehead. He was beginning to compose himself when-

"Get a room, you two. Did you really faint again, Potter? Did I hear-"

Tonks was about to come with a scathing reply, but Harry had already drawn his wand and bellowed 'STUPEFY!' at the blond.

Draco Malfoy didn't know the stunning hex, as it was a fourth year material. (Tonks taught it to Harry in his second year) he wasn't, therefore, prepared for the red light that came his way.

Hermione Granger had read about the stunner, and she knew the incantation, though she couldn't perform it. She knew if Harry's aim was true, Malfoy was likely to topple backwards, stunned. If the power behind the curse was low, he might even remain standing. She wasn't, however, prepared to see what actually happened.

When the curse hit Malfoy, in the stomach, he was thrown back fifteen feet, and when everyone looked at Harry, they actually recoiled because of the amount of fury he was radiating. A certain pink-haired metamorphmagus, though, found this quite hot.

"Wow!" Susan whispered in awe as Crabbe and Goyle ran to help their leader. Sighing, Tonks went towards the spread-eagled blond. She pointed her wand at him and muttered 'Rennervate.'

No movement.

She tried again, and this time the ponce stirred, but didn't wake. Once again, she casted the spell and this time he sat up, horrified.

"Wha... whatt happened?" he asked Crabbe.

SMACK!

Slapping the Slytherin hard across the face, Tonks went away. She heard 'my father will hear about this' behind her and she turned around.

"Suck your father's dick, and he might actually listen to what you have to say."

Goyle sniggered as Malfoy resembled a fish desperate for water. He even forgot to admonish his followers for laughing on a joke against him.

Tonks reached Harry, who was now sitting down, looking quite winded.

When he heard Malfoy's comment, Harry felt something snap in him, like something was holding him back, but suddenly he was free. It usually strained him to cast a stunning hex, seeing he was only thirteen, but this time it felt as easy as casting a Lumos. However, as soon as he saw the effect of the spell, and felt a strange satisfaction at seeing the blond git sprawled on the ground, he was back to normal, and felt quite exhausted.

"Some power you used on that spell, Harry. Had to cast the counter curse three times to get him sitting." Tonks said in an impressed voice. Harry just looked blankly at her.

"Come on, mate, you need chocolate after a spell like that." Neville said. Releasing a breath, Harry stood up and quietly followed Tonks, who was leading the way again. After a few moments, Tonks fell back and slipped her hands in to Harry's. Together, they walked in silence, still thinking over what just happened.

...

The _Three Broomsticks _was full of Hogwarts students having excited conversations and food. It was almost 3pm and Harry and Tonks were waiting for Andromeda to appear. They convinced the others that they had a private meeting with Andromeda Tonks and they should have fun while they were away. Hermione asked why they couldn't come too, and Harry regretfully replied that the meeting was quite personal. He didn't want his friends to think that they couldn't know about his personal life, but Andromeda had insisted about bringing no one.

He fiddled with the corner of his shirt as he watched Tonks biting her nails. Once she confessed him that biting nails was immensely satisfying for her as she would never run out of nails, and could return them to the perfect shape afterwards. Madam Rosemerta, the barmaid, was eyeing them with interest. She knew Tonks, of course, but the cute boy with her seemed a bit young for her, and he did look strangely familiar. Images of two handsome, cocky, and very witty boys came t her mind and she gasped when she realized it was the son of James Potter, which meant he was-

"Harry Potter?" she whispered near the boy, who looked at her with an alarmed look.

"Oh, I'm sorry for interrupting. Would you like a butterbeer?" she asked, and before they could answer, she added, "It's on the house. I knew your father, dear. He was an absolute heartbreaker. You look exactly like him, except for the eyes of Lily Evans. Oh, how she used to hex poor James whenever he asked her out!" she laughed at the memories. Harry was listening to all these carefully, smiling along with the attractive woman. He requested her to sit down with them and have a chat.

"Oh, I'd love to, but I have customers waiting. I'll catch up with you sometimes later." She went away with a smile, and came back after a short while to serve their butterbeer. She wouldn't take his money no matter what, but she promised she would charge him from next time.

"Enjoying Hogsmeade?"

Harry looked around to see Andromeda smiling at him. Tonks attacked her mother with a hug and after she was done, Harry hugged her too. They all sat down and simply looked at each other for a few moments. Despite the tension about the meeting, Harry was very happy to see Andromeda, especially after what he heard when he was near a dementor. Andromeda asked how the Hogsmeade weekend was coming along, and the teens shared a dark look.

"We faced a dementor." Tonks told her mother, whose face hardened.

"What happened?" she asked, casting a privacy charm around the table.

"Harry fainted again, and he heard... things." Tonks finished, uneasily looking at Harry, afraid that she had spilled out more information than she was supposed to. However, Harry didn't wait for Andromeda's questioning look, or lack thereof.

"I heard my mum pleading to Voldemort to spare me and kill her instead. She had a nice voice." He commented indifferently, though he was hurting inside. Andromeda held his hand and said, "She loved you, Harry. I know if she was given another chance, she would do the same a hundred times over."

There was an awkward silence for a few seconds, as the women wiped their moist eyes, and Harry shook the sadness out of him.

"So what was this big news you are supposed to tell us?" he asked finally.

Andromeda looked around to make sure the privacy charm was still intact, and then spoke.

"Do you have that map now?" she asked. Harry nodded and handed her the seemingly empty parchment.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." Andromeda whispered, and Harry and Tonks' eyes widened. She even knew the pass-phrase?

"Mum how do you know-"

"Not now, Nymphadora." Her mother replied, realizing the mistake a second later.

"Don't call me Nymphadora!" she said angrily. Harry patted her arm to remind her it was not the time. She didn't look abashed.

"Look at this." Andromeda pointed at a certain point in the map. Both of them leaned in to see what she was pointing. It was the Gryffindor common room, near the fireplace, beside Colin Creevy, a dot named-

"PETER PETTIGREW?" Tonks exclaimed and Harry's jaw dropped.

"But... wasn't he dead? Is the map... is it-"

"It's not lying, or malfunctioning. Yes, Peter Pettigrew was supposed to be dead. However, certain source told me there was a high possibility that he was actually alive. Of course, I didn't believe the source at first, but then I started to link the events, and it suddenly seemed very suspicious. Remember how I told you that the biggest part of Pettigrew they ever found was a finger? I studied the case in detail, and the records said that actually the only part they found was a finger."

"But how is that possible? There should've been other parts too." Tonks argued. "It was said that he was blasted with a single curse. If that is true, most of the bones should've been found."

"The body could've been vanished, though." Harry said, but Tonks shook her head.

"It doesn't make sense. If Black wanted to vanish his body, why leave out the finger? Though it's possible that they had a short duel where Pettigrew's finger was cut off and then he was killed and then vanished."

"Black doesn't sound like the guy who would miss out a single finger, because he was standing there and laughing until the authorities came to get him. If he wanted to cover his tracks, he could've just escaped. Besides, why are we arguing about this? We now know he is alive, don't we?" Harry said.

Andromeda was impressed by the thinking of her daughter and Harry. They had good futures in the Auror Department. Given that Harry wanted to be an Auror, of course. She cleared her throat to have their attention, and they looked at her immediately.

"Yes, we do know Pettigrew is alive, and in the Gryffindor Tower as of right now." She said. Both of them gasped.

"But how did he get in?" Tonks cried.

"What does he want? Doesn't he know Sirius Black is on the loose? It isn't safe for him to be here right now." Harry said worriedly. Andromeda had to bite back the words that wanted to escape her. She was supposed to take it slow.

"Harry, have you read about Animagus in Transfiguration? Yes? Well, fact is, Peter Pettigrew is an animagus. So was your father, and so is Sirius Black. They were all unregistered animagus." She paused for the words to sink in. They were both speechless, so Andromeda gave them some time and looked at the map again. This time she saw something that made her speechless.

"But... that's too much for coincidence... has to be an explanation..." she was saying incoherently, staring at the dot labelled 'Remus Lupin'.

"What happened mum?" Tonks asked urgently, surprised to see her mother being incoherent.

"What do you know about the Marauders?" she asked once she composed herself.

"Erm... not much. They were a group of pranksters who had the code names 'Wormtail, Moony, Padfoot and Prongs." Tonks relayed the part she overheard from her parents' conversation.

"Prongs was also known as James Potter. Padfoot is Sirius Black. Wormtail is Pettigrew, and Moony is Remus Lupin."

"My dad was a Marauder?" Harry asked with shock.

"Professor Lupin?" Tonks was thunderstruck.

"Yes, so it seems. When they were at school, the four of them were the best of friends, and pranksters from heart. They became animagus in their fifth year, and created the map around the same time. They were one of the most famous groups of friends to graduate from Hogwarts. They called themselves the Marauders."

Harry didn't have words to describe how he felt. He felt like crying, laughing and screaming all at once. He felt immensely happy to find that he found something that belonged to his father, and knowing the fact that James Potter was one of the most popular students to grace Hogwarts. At the same time, the thought of best friends betraying him like Black did, and the indifferent tone by which Professor Lupin said he knew his mum and didn't bother to acknowledge that his dad was his childhood best friend... these thoughts hurt. He didn't want partial treatment, of course. But just a 'Hi Harry, your dad was my mate' wouldn't hurt, would it? And the thing that confused him most was Peter Pettigrew. It seemed the man escaped when Black attempted to kill him, and it was understandable that he wanted to hide until Black was behind the bars. But why hide all these years, and most importantly, where was he? If he wasn't guilty for anything, he wouldn't have to hide, because Black was in Azkaban after confessing his sins, and he would be safe outside.

"Um... Andromeda, is Pettigrew totally innocent? I mean I know he didn't do much wrong, but was there anything he did that caused him to go into hiding?"

Before Andromeda could answer, Tonks replied, "Yeah, if he is an unregistered animagus it is an offence, but he could simply hide it by not transforming. Unless he thought Sirius Black would tell on him?" she asked her mother.

"I'm impressed by both of your thinking, and yes, Pettigrew is guilty. But being an unregistered animagus is the least important of his crimes."

Harry felt his mouth going dry. What other crimes did the man hiding at the Gryffindor common room commit? And he wondered why Colin didn't notice him when he was right beside him? Unless Colin already knew him, or he was in-

"What is Pettigrew's animagus form?" he asked Andromeda.

"A rat." She replied with distaste and Harry understood why Colin hasn't noticed him yet, or how he broke in to Hogwarts.

"He has been at Hogwarts since you came, Harry." Andromeda continued. "In fact he is a pet rat."

A pet rat? He had a vision of Hermione arguing with Ron Weasley about her cat and-

"Scabbers? That's Ron's rat!" he exclaimed, looking at Tonks. Her eyes widened in shock.

"He has been sharing the same dorm with you for years?" she looked somewhat horrified.

"What were his crimes, Andromeda?" he asked sharply, and Andromeda sighed before answering.

"All the crimes Sirius Black was supposed to have done."

"WHAT?" both of them shouted, and if there wasn't a privacy charm, customers from Honeydukes could have heard the shout. For a few moments, they tried to process what they were said, and then Harry spoke.

"He framed Black? You want to say that Black was innocent?" Andromeda nodded, and Tonks asked, "How do you know all these now? Or did you know it all along?"

"I wished I knew it all along." She looked tired when she said that. "I came to know it a few days back. I have a reliable source." They just stared at her, silently asking for an explanation.

"Sirius Black was offered to be the secret keeper of the Potters. But he refused. Not because he didn't want to be responsible, because he thought it would be obvious. James Potter was best friends with Sirius Black, so it would be only normal if Sirius became the Potter's secret keeper. He suggested Peter Pettigrew because he was a kind of slob, and no one would expect the frightened little Pettigrew to be the Potters' secret keeper. So they let everyone know that Sirius Black was their secret keeper, while it was actually Pettigrew. Apparently, Pettigrew was a Death Eater, so as soon as he was trusted with the secret, he ran to his master to spill it. I think that was the most glorious moment of his pathetic life. After You-Know-Who fell, Sirius hunted him and found him in a street full of people. The rat then shouted to the whole street how Sirius betrayed James and Lily, and then blasted the whole street. In the confusion and panic, he cut his finger and transformed to a rat and escaped. And Sirius was so shocked, he lost his mind and just laughed until the DMLE came to arrest him." She finished sadly. Harry's head was spinning. The man he hated for betraying his parents was actually innocent? And he had to serve twelve years of Azkaban, surrounded by dementors. He faced them just twice and in his opinion it was too many times already. He suddenly felt very sick.

"But how do we prove this to the ministry? They are not going to take your words for it." Tonks said, worried for her once favourite uncle.

"There's one way. Isn't there?" Andromeda said softly.

"We have to catch Pettigrew." Harry said slowly, but with determination. Tonks' eyes widened and Andromeda nodded. As much as she wanted them to have normal lives, staying away from trouble, especially of this magnitude, but it was the only way. Well, she could tell Dumbledore, but she had learned to expect Dumbledore to screw up everything, and later claim that it was for the greater good. She knew if they alarmed Pettigrew in some way, Sirius would lose any hopes of freedom. And if they were caught helping an escaped mass murderer... she didn't want to even think of the consequences.

"But how do you know your... source isn't wrong and Pettigrew is really innocent? There is no actual proof that he is the guilty one, except for the fact he is alive." Harry said in a tense voice. "I mean the hints point at that conclusion, but there might be some other reasons Pettigrew has been hiding. And we can hardly blame him for escaping if he was actually innocent. I mean I trust you, but what if we are wrong about Pettigrew?" he finished quietly. He didn't want to argue with Andromeda, but it was foolish to trust the words of a 'source', as according to the story, no one other than the people involved knew about the switch of the secret keepers. It was suspicious that someone else knew about it.

Andromeda smiled at the boy. He would've made a good Slytherin. "Of course Harry, I understand. You want to be sure. Why don't we meet up with this 'source' of mine? Maybe he can convince you."

Harry perked up at this. That was actually a good idea. "Sure. When can we meet him?"

"What about now?" Andromeda said with a lopsided grin. Both teens' eyes widened and they nodded in agreement. She didn't plan for them to meet today, mainly because she didn't think their meeting would go this good. She didn't expect them to be so thoughtful and thinking everything logically. She stopped by Sirius' cave to say hello just before coming here. That mutt is in for a surprise.

...

"You're kidding me right? We have to climb that- HEY!" Tonks exclaimed as Harry poked her in the ribs and started climbing the small hill. Huffing, she followed, Andromeda trailing behind.

After ten minutes, they were standing at the top, looking at the entrance of a cave.

"He lives here? In this cave? What kind of person is he?" Tonks whispered to Harry, as Andromeda went to fetch her source. Harry shrugged, not having a clue why would someone live in this seemingly godforsaken place.

Andromeda came back, but she was not alone. A great black dog, which looked quite familiar to Harry, followed her, waggling its tail.

"Harry, Dora, I'd like you to meet my informant." She said, waving at the dog. They were about to express their concerns regarding Andromeda's sanity, when the great black dog transformed, in front of their eyes, to a tall, thin man with long, dirty hair. With a slightly croaky voice, the man introduced himself.

"Sirius Black. Convicted mass murderer, falsely accused Death Eater, one of the Marauders, and godfather of Harry Potter. A pleasure to meet you again."

_A/N: Virtual cookies to __**ILikeComps**__ for the 300__th__ review. On a different note, do you like the new summary?_

_Review please. It gives me motivation to write more, and publish faster._


	17. Moony and the Planning

**17. Moony and the Planning**

"Hermione can you do me a favour?" Harry asked quietly. Seeing her nod, he beckoned her to follow him. The curious witch went after him, intrigued.

When they reached an empty room, Harry looked around to make sure no one was watching or listening. Apparently satisfied, he nervously started.

"Er... you know how your cat likes to chase Ron's rat?" she nodded in confusion.

"You have to stop Crookshanks for a few days. I'm really sorry I can't explain more because I swore not to tell anyone, but this is very important for everyone. Can you please do it? For me?" he pleaded.

Hermione was slightly hurt. Her first friend in the Wizarding world didn't trust her enough to share a secret with her. She knew it was her who had to take the most blame. In her first year, when he was very friendly with her and shared almost everything with Neville and her, she acted like a bossy rules-are-above-life person, and she constantly pushed him to do his homework, to tell her what was bothering him and everything that went on in his life. With the intention of being closer to him, she had pushed him away from her, and now he spent more time with the Hufflepuffs and Neville than her. True, she was rather busy with all the subjects she took and most of the time she was tired from using the time-turner to do multiple classes at the same time, she still wished she actually had a friend who would trust her with their secrets.

However, she knew that there were secrets that couldn't be shared, like her time-turner secret, and she resignedly nodded in acceptance of her request, hoping that one day she would be close to Harry again. Crookshanks would have to be confined inside her room for a while. She absently wondered what importance a cat and rat fight had to Harry. But she had given up trying to guess Harry's life long ago. It was literally stranger than fiction.

Harry was surprised by Hermione's lack of questions. It was very unlike her, but he liked this new improvement, because it meant the bushy haired girl was starting to respect his privacy. He felt guilty at telling her virtually nothing when asking her to keep her cat within her dorms, but there was no other way. It wasn't a matter of trust. It was just that even the walls had ears. He felt bad at not being able to share this with Susan, but he knew she would understand when he would finally tell her, which was as soon as Black... Sirius' name was cleared.

It still felt odd to think of the escaped prisoner as his godfather. He spent the whole summer thinking of him as the reason for his misfortunes, but suddenly he was introduced as the scapegoat who suffered more than Harry cared to imagine. His years at the Dursleys were visits to the park compared to what Azkaban sounded like. If his encounters with the Dementors taught him anything, it was to steer clear of the island for his whole life because he was likely to go mad in weeks, if he ever set foot on the place.

Speaking of Dementors, he was supposed to find Professor Lupin. He still felt a bit distant towards the Defence professor, but Sirius told him (he was both delighted and nervous when he learnt that his old mate was a teacher. Needless to say, he was disgusted when he saw the dot of Snape in the map) that Professor Lupin was much too fair and probably didn't mention anything so that he wasn't accused of showing favouritism. When Harry pointed out that Snape showed favouritism every minute of school, Sirius said that Lupin couldn't face himself with any guilt, so what Snape does really doesn't matter to him.

Hastily thanking Hermione and hiding behind a statue to check the map, he noticed Professor Lupin was with 'Severus Snape' in his office. Snape's face was always unpleasant, but he showed pure loathing when he looked at Professor Lupin. His look almost rivalled the one he usually reserved for Harry. Almost.

After a minute, Snape went away, and Harry made his way to the ex-Marauder's office.

"May I come in, sir?" he asked politely when he reached the open door. The man was drinking something.

"Horrible. Oh yes Harry, come in." He said with a grimace. Not understanding his reaction, Harry hesitated.

"Is it a bad time, sir? I can come back later-"

"Oh no. I just had a bad tasting potion. Please have a seat." He said, pointing at the empty chair in front of his desk. Harry did as he was asked.

"So how may I help you, Harry?" Lupin asked pleasantly. Harry looked a bit nervous, undecided if the professor would really help him.

"Er... you remember how I fainted when on the train when a dementor came?" he started. Lupin looked concerned.

"Yes I do, and I don't want you to think any less of yourself because of it. You are not weak, if that's what you are concerned about. A dementor makes you relieve your worst memories and-"

"My worst is worse than others'. I've been told that, sir." Harry interjected. " I actually have a favour to ask you. On our first Hogsmeade weekend, I came to face another dementor, and once again I fainted. I know I'm not weak, but I can't afford to faint every time I meet a dementor. So I asked an older student if there was any defence, and she told me that there was a kind of shield."

"The patronus charm." Lupin said with a nod. Harry nodded and continued.

"Yeah, that. So I was wondering if you could teach it to me." He finished, looking at the professor hopefully. He sighed and thought for a few moments.

"I could, but you have to understand that it is a very advanced charm. In fact, it is considered well out of the NEWTs syllabus. A lot of full grown wizards are unable to perform it, especially in front of a dementor. If you do try to learn it, I don't expect you to cast an effective patronus charm within the year. You also should know that this will exhaust you very easily. Now, do you wish to learn it?"

"Yes professor." Harry replied with a determined face. Lupin smiled at him.

"Very well. How about we start our lesson from this Friday? You have the evening free? Great. I'll see you then Harry."

Harry gave a small smile and excused himself. A few minutes ago, he felt a bit... ill-treated by Professor Lupin because he didn't even mention being close friends with his father. Now he felt different. Sure, he still wished that he mentioned his parents in the passing, but the Defence teacher agreed to teach him a seemingly difficult charm that other teachers like McGonagall wouldn't. From what he said, it was a really tough charm to master and he would have to work really hard to master him. Harry Potter wasn't usually very driven to do schoolwork, but the prospect of hearing his mother's last, pleading voice hardened his resolve. Hearing her voice gave him an odd kind of assurance that his parents really loved him, but he didn't want to hear their voice when they knew they were going to die within a few seconds.

_I will master this charm within this term. _He promised himself.

...

After a week of watching Pettigrew on the map, Harry and Tonks started to get frustrated. They had to capture him in utmost secrecy, so that if things go wrong, they wouldn't have anyone suspecting them. Trouble was the rat always seemed to stay in Ron's pocket or under his pillow. The only time they separated was during Ron's class periods. At those times, he was found lurking in crowded or open spaces where it would be suspicious if they tried to catch him. Harry once expressed his concerns if the rat knew about their plans, but Tonks pointed out that if he did know, he would've escaped as soon as possible because it would be disastrous for him if they went to Lupin or Dumbledore with the map.

Finally, Lupin had admitted that he was James Potter's friend during his school. It took him Harry's disoriented muttering about hearing his father's voice when he faced the boggart-dementor for the first time in their patronus lessons. Harry produced a short living silver smoke at the end of the lesson, and Lupin gave him a chocolate and casually told him that he knew both of his parents at Hogwarts. Harry asked, faking ignorance, if he knew Sirius too, and the sombre faced professor replied that he thought he did. It wasn't much, but Harry knew about the professor's somewhat absurd fear of committing favouritism, and was quite satisfied.

Lupin, on the other hand, felt exceptionally bad not being able to show some affection to Harry. He remembered the one year old smiling toothlessly at 'Unca Moowey' and waving his tiny fists at him, Lily smiling beside him and James attempting to imitate his son for the little boy's amusement. If his idea of Vernon Dursley told him anything, it was that Harry didn't grow up with much affection. He ached to comfort the boy and ask about his childhood, or tell him stories about his parents (he noticed that Harry's face brightened whenever he said something about his parents), but he hated the feeling of self-righteousness that prevented him from doing so. He had a hard time deciding if he really wanted to teach him the patronus charm, but realized that he wasn't giving preference to James and Lily's son, he was helping out a student who needed his help. He wished he was like Snape, favouring whomever he wanted, without the fear of even a slap on the wrist from the Headmaster. He knew a Death Eater spy was far more important to Dumbledore than a werewolf who practically had no importance whatsoever. He wished he wasn't this poor, so that he could just do things without the worry of losing a job or being broke. He supposed Dumbledore wouldn't sack him just for showing some affection to Harry, and he knew he was being rather paranoid and... stupid, but he knew Severus' hate of the boy, and if he or the other teachers complained against him... he knew whose words were worth more to the old man. So he just settled on briefly mentioning that he knew James Potter at school just to raise the boy's spirits a bit.

How he wished he was back to his school days, and his greatest worry would be the ventures with other Marauders at the full moon.

...

"We do it tonight." He said quietly. Tonks looked at him, surprised.

"Capture Pettigrew? But how?"

"With some inside help." He said, grinning slyly. The metamorphmagus looked confused.

"Care to elaborate?"

"How about we have a chat with the Weasley troublemakers?" Tonks looked shocked at first and then a wide grin plastered on her face.

"Oh I'm gonna marry you, Harry Potter." She exclaimed to the Boy Who Lived, who looked mortified... and red, of course.

As it turned out, the 'Weasley Troublemakers' didn't refer to the twins anymore. In an attempt to make up for their lack of attention to her last year, the twins inducted Ginny to the group, and along with Lee Jordan's occasional helps, the trio was deadlier than ever, and Harry had an idea that Ginny might surpass the twins when she would gain some more knowledge. She was more mature than anyone suspected, Harry noted.

Harry and Tonks claimed they wanted set up a Crookshanks vs. Mrs Norris fight and they needed Scabbers as the bait for Crookshanks to appear, because apparently the cat was hiding in Hermione's room and wouldn't come out. The twins agreed instantly, but Ginny expressed her concerns about Scabbers' well-being, as 'the poor rat could do with some time away from cats'. Harry and Tonks both assured her that Scabbers wouldn't be touched by any cats.

The downside of their discussion was that the Weasleys demanded to know how they planned to capture Mrs Norris and was unsatisfied with their answer that it was a 'Trade secret we don't wish to disclose'.

It was difficult to plan the capture of the traitor who caused his parents' death and pretend that they were about to arrange a mere catfight. The Weasleys didn't understand why they insisted that no one else see them at catching Scabbers, but they helped anyway. Harry felt guilty at lying to them while attempting to kidnap a pet they had for years, but there was no other choice.

He pulled out a parchment where he sketched the layout of the Gryffindor common room with the help of the Marauder's Map, and laid it out. George and Fred quickly copied it, once Harry told them that he just made it himself by roaming around the place. They looked suspiciously at him, but didn't push the topic. Together, the five of them planned a 'Rescue Mission' (as the twins liked to put it) that consisted of a few dungbombs, some chocolate fudge spiked with a daydreaming sugar that the twins recently invented to distract Ron, and a few useful spells from the twins and from Tonks. They told the Weasleys that they had a cage ready to keep Scabbers safe until he was needed, but didn't see the necessity of mentioning that it was actually Andromeda who supplied them with that cage, which had some protective spells on it to prevent Pettigrew from transforming while inside it. After double checking every details of the plan, they all shook hands while the twins adopted a proud look, saying that they felt emotional seeing that Harry was 'going on the right path.' Harry smiled at them.

_They are happy not knowing._

Contrary to what everyone thought, Ginny Weasley was a smart girl. She wasn't the Hermione sort of smart; she just understood a lot just by looking at someone.

She knew Harry and Tonks didn't have any plans to set up a fight between the cats. Harry and Tonks both laughed with her brothers while planning, but sometimes they lost their mask and looked at the other nervously, and there was a slight tension in their postures and smiles that they tried hard to cover, which told Ginny that whatever they were planning, was far more serious than an innocent prank. She didn't know if they would actually capture Scabbers, or the rat was just a part of their story, but she knew Mrs Norris wasn't going to be captured anytime soon. He brothers were genius at planning and executing pranks, but they weren't the observing kind. They didn't know they were actually helping them with something else, something far less innocent. She didn't know what their actual motive was, but she didn't tell anything to her brothers.

Harry and Tonks might be lying, probably for the Weasleys' own good, but this was Harry Potter. Whatever he was doing, was most probably going to make some lives better. She knew it from her experience.

_If he wants secrecy, I can do that for him. I owe him that much._

_A/N: If you guys like short stories featuring Grey Harry, there's a HarryTracey one shot I wrote a few days back. I promise it is written way better than this story (according to me, at least). Give it a try if you are interested._

_Be sweet and review please!_


	18. The Strange Reunion

_A/N: Um... so this is the edited one. Changes weren't that major, but some stupid things were removed. Some people said that I'm trying too hard to stay close to canon, but I just wanted Harry to fend off a dementor or two. Believe me when I say things are going to be far from canon in later chapters._

**18. The Strange Reunion**

The plan was quite straightforward. They would have to drop some dungbombs in the common room, after placing bubblehead charms on themselves, making sure that no one was present on the common room during the capture. It wouldn't be a much difficult feat, seeing that it was a Monday and people already were looking forward to go to bed early.

Then Harry would offer Ron the spiked chocolate fudge, which the other Weasleys assured he would consume before Harry could blink, and once he was having pleasant daydreams, they would look for Scabbers, (Harry would actually look in his map, but he didn't tell it to them) and hopefully catch him. Tonks was to accompany Harry to the dorms under a disillusionment charm and help him in catching the rat. The Weasleys were to take positions in the common room so that if it came down to a chase, they could help too. Scabbers was then to stay with Harry until he was used to coax Crookshanks out of the girl's dorm before the fight was to take place. They felt quite satisfied with the plan and went off to carry it out.

...

Ron Weasley was livid. It was bad enough that Scabbers was scared to leave his pocket for that damned cat of Hermione Granger, and now Harry Potter and his weirdo hair-changing friend have gone and kidnapped him to lure some cats.

And his own siblings have helped with him!

He was angry at the Boy-Who-Lived for tricking him with that chocolate fudge. When he took it, he felt like his brain was playing numerous pleasant fantasies one after another. He was totally enchanted by the one where Chudley Cannons were just about to beat Puddlemore United to win the league when he suddenly jerked back to reality. At first he looked around to see what broke his excellent daydream, but found none. It was just as something stopped working in his brain.

That was when he realized that he was given a daydream potion by someone. Then he remembered Harry offering him a chocolate fudge and that the visions started almost immediately. Scowling, he went down to the common room to find the twins bidding goodbye to Ginny, who was going to her dorm.

"Look Gred! Ickle Ronnie is here!" One of them said.

"Oh my! We have to improve our products a bit, Forge. They do seem short lived." The other replied worriedly.

"Where is Harry?" Ron asked, not in the mood for the twins' jokes. Not that he ever was.

"Ah, realized that he is missing?"

"Well done, Ron. We are quite proud of you."

"Shut it! He is not here; it's not hard to notice. Why did he spike my fudge?"

"Oh dear. He thinks we are talking about Harry. And here I was about to admit that he is related to me." Fred said with a long sigh.

"No, really? That idiot is related to you? We should start seeing other people, Fred. I don't want to be your friend anymore." George said in a remorseful voice.

"Who else is missing?" Ron asked with a frown. Then he remembered Scabbers. He wasn't in his pocket or in the dorm when he came down.

"Why did he take Scabbers?" he asked confusedly. Why would Harry be interested in Scabbers?

The twins shared an evil smile. Tormenting Ron was quite easy.

"Oh, he is to be used as a bait for the upcoming inter-Hogwarts cat wrestling about to be started tomorrow."

"We'll save you a front row seat for donating Scabbers."

"Maybe you can have unspiked chocolate fudge from Harry as the payment."

"We will even cheer for Scabbers at the fights."

"Where is he?" Ron asked with gritted teeth. His rat was ill and they were using him for a bloody bait?

"I believe they are towards the Hufflepuff tower." Fred supplied, sure that Harry and Tonks wouldn't have any troubles from his little brother. He would probably rant for a while and then go back to bed. It was what he did when he got mad. Rant a lot.

To his surprise, however, Ron bolted out of the common room and disappear from sight all within a few seconds.

"You think we should stop him?" George asked, feeling a bit worried.

"Nah, he'll come back as soon as he realizes that it is past curfew." Fred answered, though he wasn't sure he believed what he said.

The twins shared a troubled look, which was identical to boot.

...

Harry and Tonks were not in the Hufflepuff common room. They were heading back from the owlery. As soon as they caught the rat, they decided to write to the adults while they kept the cage containing Pettigrew safe. Harry wrote to Sirius and Tonks wrote to her mother. Obviously, Sirius would be the first to arrive as he was probably at the boundaries of Hogwarts.

They were discussing the possibilities once Pettigrew was questioned by the DMLE, when Harry had a sense of danger. He didn't have enough time to think over it.

"Expelliarmus!"

He turned around just in time to see the red beam of light streaking towards him, and instinct overruling his logical thoughts; he raised the cage in his hand to block it.

Tonks saw in horror as the cage flew from Harry's hand, and the lid opened as it crashed to the ground, and the rat running towards a red-faced Ron Weasley.

However, Scabbers slipped through Ron's waiting hand and before her head processed what was happening, Harry was already sprinting after the rat. Pushing Ron out of the way, he followed Pettigrew around the corner and disappeared from sight.

"Come back here-"

Before his voice could attract the attention of Filch, she stunned Ron and went after Harry, her height decreasing by a couple of inches. She found that she was far less clumsy when she was shorter and her centre of gravity was lower. She reached the Great Hall, but Harry's footsteps were not to be heard. Mentally cursing Harry for being so fast and Pettigrew for being a rat, she looked around as if expecting to find a clue.

She slapped her own head when she remembered the Marauder's Map in her pocket. She hurriedly pulled it out from her pocket and activated it. Harry was heading towards the main entrance and Pettigrew was already outside the gates.

"How did you get this?" a disbelieving voice asked from behind and she jumped a foot in the air before crashing down on her butt. Remus Lupin, however, didn't seem to notice that and was still waiting for an answer.

She remembered that the professor was a Marauder, and she pointed him one dot she knew he could not ignore.

"Stop him professor. He is escaping!"

However, the grey haired man just looked at the dot of 'Peter Pettigrew', who was running towards the Forest, with his eyes threatening to pop out in disbelief. He came to his senses after another urgent reminder from the violet haired student in front of him.

Running to the entrance, he pointed his wand at the forest and said, "Accio Pettigrew." Tonks almost groaned at the fact that she hadn't thought of that earlier.

A small figure was zooming towards Lupin's outstretched hand and Lupin caught the struggling rat easily. Looking at the creature in his hand for a long time, he casted the spell to force an animagus transformation.

Remus Lupin was not a fan of surprises. Most of the surprises he ever got were unpleasant to him, except for the surprises regarding the Marauders.

But surprise wasn't a strong enough word for what he felt right now. How were you supposed to feel when you see your friend pointing a wand at you, especially when the friend was supposed to have died twelve years ago? He didn't know what to think because he was too shocked to see Peter alive to think properly.

Slowly, Pettigrew started to sit up. Years of living as a rat made him disoriented in human form. He felt the need to walk on four limbs, but then again, it was uncomfortable. He looked at the old Marauder with terrified eyes, quickly trying to make a story before Sirius showed up. He heard the brats talking about writing to him when he was inside the cage.

"What are you doing here Wormy?" Lupin finally asked him.

"He... hello Re... Remus. You have to sa... save me from Bl.. Black, Remus. He would k... kill me." The watery eyed man stuttered. However, it was not Remus who replied.

"Now, ain't that a tempting thought?"

Everyone turned around to see Sirius Black standing behind them, with a fire in his eyes.

Pettigrew started to shout something, but a hex from Tonks shut him up.

"What are you doing here?" Lupin asked Sirius with a cold voice, which was infected with some doubt.

"Why don't we ask the rat?" Sirius replied evenly. Everyone turned towards the mentioned animagus, who was cowering under their gazes.

"How are you alive, Peter?" Lupin asked him.

"Care to show your right hand, Wormtail?" Sirius said with venom. Pettigrew looked horrified at the idea. Harry, who was standing beside him, grabbed the right hand and showed it to everyone.

"The only piece of Peter Pettigrew they ever found was a single finger." Sirius recited with a growl.

Lupin looked between his former friends and asked in a whisper, "You faked it? Of course you did, you are alive." He muttered the last part to himself.

"You... you can hardly b... blame me for trying to s... stay alive." The rat-man stammered.

"Tell him why I went after you, you bastard." Sirius sneered.

"You went after him? I heard it was the other way round? And why haven't you showed up earlier?" Lupin asked.

"You know, for a brilliant teacher, you are being quite slow." Tonks piped in. Lupin looked surprised to find her and Harry still there.

"Harry! You shouldn't be here. He is..." the professor started, but trailed off as he remembered that if Sirius wanted to hurt Harry, he had his fair share of chance in the last few minutes.

"I was h... hiding." Pettigrew managed as the werewolf looked back at him again. Harry muttered, "No really?" Sirius threw a smirk at him.

Pettigrew continued, "I was hiding from B...Black. I knew he would c... come after me when he knew I... was alive."

"But he was in Azkaban, or did you foresee him breaking out?" Tonks asked with disgust.

"Answer that, you son of a bitch." Sirius growled. Lupin looked at him for the answer too.

"You... you learned lots of Dark Arts f... from the D... Dark Lord, it was on... only a matter of time you b... broke out." The man looked pleadingly at Lupin, as if begging him to believe him.

"How dare you! I worked for my whole life to stand against so much as blood discrimination and you dare to say I joined Voldemort? What, afraid of your old master's name Peter? It was always you who used to hide behind the big boys, not me. You became friends with us because we could protect you from bullies. You joined Voldemort because he was on the winning side. YOU BETRAYED JAMES AND LILY YOU MOTHERFUCKER!" Sirius bellowed at the man who looked ready to pass out from fear. Lupin's mouth fell open.

"I... I don't know what y... you are t... talking about." Pettigrew managed to say in a barely audible voice.

"LIAR! It was you they made the secret keeper at the last moment and it was you who gave that secret to Voldemort and it was you I had to spend twelve years in Azkaban for! Don't bother to deny it Peter. You'll just make it worse."

"It was him, not you?" Lupin asked Sirius. And when the escaped prisoner looked at him, he saw every second of the twelve years at Azkaban looking back at him. He stepped forward and embraced his old friend tightly.

"Forgive me Padfoot, for believing you were the traitor." He said in a cracked voice.

"If you forgive me for believing that you were the traitor who was causing the information leak." He replied with a similar voice. Then they broke up and looked at Pettigrew, who took the reunion of his old friends as his death sentence.

"Why did you do it, Peter? What made you go to Voldemort and betray your friends?" Lupin's voice was pained. Pettigrew looked down and sniffed.

"Y... you have no idea what the D... Dark Lord was capable of. He... he would've k... killed me if I didn't give him the secret." He said miserably. But no one felt any sympathy for him

"Then you should have died! Like we would have died for you. How come you got sorted to Gryffindor?"

"And you're going to die anyway."

Peter Pettigrew was the type who got scared easily. His friends just sometimes jumped at him unexpectedly to hear the girlish squeak or loud yelp he would give when they did that. However, when he looked at the green eyes of Harry Potter, which reminded him of Lily, he felt more scared than ever.

"Harry... sweet boy. P... Please forgive me. Y... Your parents would have f... forgiven..."

SMACK!

"Don't dare to talk with Harry about his parents, you scoundrel." Sirius said with venom as he clutched his face where Sirius slapped him.

"So what do we... oh!"

Lupin's expression suddenly changed in the middle of the sentence, like he was apprehensive of something.

"What's it Moony?" Sirius asked confusedly.

"It's full moon." When he registered the look of horror in Sirius' eyes, he hastily added, "Not to worry, I've taken the potion and I was heading towards the forest before I met Miss Tonks here. I'll go for now. Make sure the rat doesn't escape again." With that, he looked at the confused teens, gave a little smile and offered, "I'm a werewolf."

There was an uncomfortable silence where Harry and Tonks tried to process his words.

Professor Lupin.

A werewolf.

"Moony." Harry whispered in understanding and Lupin nodded with a tired smile and walked away to the forest.

Together, they watched the man disappear between the trees and Sirius sighed. It was all coming back to him. Hogwarts, the forest, werewolf friends.

Harry knew Pettigrew could escape easily if they were distracted. The advantage of having such a small creature as your animagus form. To make sure Sirius didn't suffer, he pointed his wand at the crying man and muttered, "Stupefy."

As soon as he cast the spell, he felt cold. At first he wondered why casting a stunner would make him feel cold, but then a strong sense of hopelessness came to him and he sensed them before he saw them.

About a hundred dementors, gliding towards their little group, no doubt attracted by the scent of Sirius Black's human form.

"My wand is too weak to cast a patronus, can you cast one?" Sirius asked in a frightened voice. He had twelve years of experience with those creatures. Every time they got worse. Tonks looked unsure of herself, but she put on a determined face and attempted the only spell she had troubles with in DADA.

Harry could faintly hear the screams of his mother, but this time he knew he could do it. He pictured a happy Sirius, with Andromeda smiling beside him. He thought of Susan, Hannah, Neville and Hermione. Most importantly, he thought of Dora. Her dimples when she laughed and her large eyes that were always so full of life. With his chest glowing with positive emotions, he whispered, "Expecto Patronum."

Suddenly there was a brilliant light and the dementor fled. One by one, all the dementors were driven away by the shining patronus which was in the form of-

"Prongs." The dog animagus thought with wonder.

On the grounds of Hogwarts, after many years and defying many odds, in a strange set up, the Marauders were reunited again.

That was what Andromeda saw when she arrived on the base of the Whomping Willow.

That was what James and Lily Potter witnessed, out of the reach of the world, yet closer to their son and their friends than anything.

"I'm so proud of him." Lily whispered, leaning her head on her husband's shoulders and with a misty eye.

"Not more than me, darling." James Potter declared, wrapping an arm around his wife.


	19. Convincing

_I have rewritten chapter 18 to omit a few stupid stuff coz that was probably one of the worst chapters of the story. I recommend you read chapter 18 before proceeding to this chapter._

**19. Convincing**

Amelia Bones, the current head of DMLE, was having a bad headache. Fudge was attempting to cut down the Auror Department's budget further by investing more money in relatively useless things like International Relations. Amelia wasn't a fool, though. She knew Fudge was only trying to strengthen his popularity, which would assure his seat for a few more years. Power corrupted the best of men, and Fudge was just another stupid arse who got some power and was greedy for more.

There was a knock on her door. She called "Come in" and a large man with dark complexion and a massive earring entered.

"Sit down, Kingsley. Tea?"

"Not today, Amelia." He refused politely.

"If you are sure. So, what's the matter?" she asked the Senior Auror.

"Aurors are thinking of going to a strike if we are randomly sacked without a reason. Of course, this is all off the record. Officially, we are working as usual." He said with a humourless laugh. Amelia nodded.

"I thought it might come down to this. You'd think losing a mass murderer from Azkaban would at least push some senses to the minister, but he insists we don't need that much Aurors right now. Apparently, he is investing a lot on the World Cup arrangements. And then Barty Crouch is hanging around with him a lot these days. Maybe we will have another international event soon."

"Barty Crouch isn't the type to hang around with the minister without a good reason, so maybe you are right. But I'm worried about the World Cup security. I mean, Bagman isn't exactly what you'd call a security-concerned man. I wouldn't put it past him to exclude the regular Magical Law Enforcers from security to save money for more decorations and put the whole security in Auror department."

Amelia agreed with a nod. Bagman wasn't corrupt, but he wasn't fit to be a department head. The only reason he was in his office was because of his popularity. Former quidditch players preferred to do small business or coach the teams rather than having a ministry job. He was the celebrity of his office and his co-workers voted him as their head because they were fans of his game.

"Oh, before I forget," Kingsley interrupted he thoughts and she looked apologetically at him for ignoring him.

"I found that Dawes woman you asked me to look for. Here is her address." He handed her a piece of parchment, which she shoved in her pockets.

"What does she do?" she asked.

"Works in a magical publishers' company as their editor. Lives alone in a quiet neighbourhood. Why are you interested in her? She doesn't seem the type to attract any trouble or anything." Kingsley asked curiously.

"Just doing a favour for a friend. Thanks Kingsley."

"No problem. I'll get going then, there's a hell of papers waiting for me. Bye, Amelia."

"See you, Kingsley."

As the door closed behind Kingsley, Amelia let out a heavy sigh and sank low on her chair. Maybe an Auror strike was indeed necessary to open Fudge's eyes. But then again, Aurors planned strike quite often. For pay rise, for reducing workload, for advanced gears, etc. But they rarely carried it out. As much they complained, they all loved their job. On the other hand, firing their colleagues without any reason wasn't something Fudge dared to do before. Maybe this time they would actually go on a strike.

She turned towards her schedule book and tapped her wand on it. It recited in a clear, cool voice that she only had some files to look over for today.

"That can wait." She muttered to herself and threw a handful of powder to the fireplace.

On the other side of the fire, she saw an empty sofa. A soft bell was tinkling at her floo call and she waited patiently. Seconds later, Andromeda appeared in front of her.

"Hey Amy. What's the matter?" her friend asked.

"Are you busy? Can I come over?"

"Yeah, sure." Andromeda replied and a second later, Amelia Bones came spinning out of the fireplace.

"Good to see you don't fall over your butt anymore." Andromeda said with a smirk, remembering the young Amy who was nearly as clumsy as her Nymphadora. Amelia glared at her before sitting down on the sofa.

"I got the address of Jennifer Dawes." She said and offered the piece of parchment to Andromeda before continuing.

"She apparently works as an editor in a magical publishers'. Lives alone in a quiet neighbourhood, according to my source."

"Lives alone? That's interesting." Andromeda murmured absently, wondering if there was a chance for Sirius.

"So, how are you doing?" Amelia asked. Andromeda didn't answer immediately, but looked like she was trying to decide something.

"Any leads on Sirius Black?" she finally asked and Amelia shook her head bitterly.

"Not a clue. Man seems to be good at hiding. Dementors are angrier than ever."

After a short pause, Andromeda asked, "Do you remember his case, Amy?"

Amelia looked at her like she was sprouting an extra head.

"Betrayed the Potters and killed, no scratch that, blasted Pettigrew and a handful of muggles to smithereens just after You-Know-Who's downfall. Kind of hard to forget, don't you think?"

Andromeda laughed at her friend's tone. "Okay, fine. So you remember what happened to Pettigrew, I assume?"

Amelia didn't know where her friend was going with this, but she nodded.

"Yes, blasted to pieces so small that all they ever found was a freaky index finger."

"Didn't you ever find that suspicious?"

There was a tension in the room that followed Andromeda's question. Pettigrew was a martyr hero and it was disrespectful to question the death of a martyr. Specially a martyr like Pettigrew.

"What are you implying, Andy?" Amelia asked with a slightly shaking voice.

Knowing that she was treading on thin ice, Andromeda continued cautiously.

"Putting all the sentiments aside for a second, let's look at it logically, okay?"

Amelia nodded, but there was a frown on her face.

"The only part of Pettigrew they ever found was a finger, right? But if he was blasted by a curse, similar small pieces should have been found, but they found none. You follow me?"

Amelia nodded again, her frown deepening. She never thought of that...

"So if it was a normal curse, the body isn't supposed to burst into such small pieces. So let's assume it was a dark curse. Even if it was, we know that some bones are too hard to be broken to powder if not specifically targeted for that area."

"But he could've vanished the other parts." Amelia countered, though already seeing the fault in her argument.

"He could've, but the finger was right in front of him, how'd he miss it? And let's not forget that he was actually standing there till the DMLE reached. If he wanted to erase evidence, he wouldn't kill him in front of witnesses or wait for someone to catch him. Finally, do you know what happened in his trial?"

"Uh... no, Crouch conducted it in private. Why do you ask?" she asked with apprehension.

"Only the Head of DMLE can grant access to records of trials, right?" Andromeda asked.

"Yes, but if you want to see Black's trial records-"

"Not me. You just go back and bring check the file and tell me if you find anything wrong with it." She gestured Amelia towards the fireplace.

"What do you mean by finding something wrong? And why are you so interested in this?" she asked suspiciously.

"I promise I'll tell you everything after you come back."

With a last strange look at her oldest friend, Amelia apparated directly to the trial archives where no one other than her had permission to enter. Of course, she was bound to hand over copies of any trial when the Department of Mysteries demanded them without question, but they weren't allowed to be here physically. The wards made sure of that.

...

After half an hour, Amelia reappeared in the Tonks' residence with a flushed face. She was out of her breath and took a second to calm down.

"Okay, so what do you know Andy?" she asked in a demanding tone.

"What did you find?" Andromeda asked innocently.

"There is no record of a sodding trial. I looked for the Wizengamot's records for that day and there wasn't any trial for Sirius Black. I knew a lot of Death Eaters were thrown straight to Azkaban, but someone as important as Sirius Black? What was Crouch thinking?" she said in an outraged voice. Andromeda allowed a minute for her friend to calm down before deciding to drop the bomb.

"What if it turns out that Pettigrew is alive?"

It took five glasses of Firewhiskey and a whole hour to convince Amelia that Pettigrew was an animagus and was still alive and that Sirius was innocent.

"So does it mean you are in touch with Black?" Amelia asked knowingly.

"And with Pettigrew. I can tell you his location if you can promise Sirius a fair trial under Veritaserum."

"That can be arranged, but I will have to face hell for that. So where is Pettigrew?"

Andromeda smirked before answering.

"In my pocket."

...

Three days later, the whole Wizarding World was in an uproar. Every witch and wizard subscribed to the Daily Prophet had only one topic of conversation, which was the headline of that day's issue.

_**Sirius Black writes to the Daily Prophet. Claims to be innocent.**_

_In a move unexpected by anyone, Sirius Black, the mass murderer who recently became the first human being to escape from the prison of Azkaban, wrote a letter to the Daily Prophet. To prove the authenticity of the letter, he even attached his blood sample, which we verified with the ministry records and found it to be real. He claims some shocking things in his letter, and the strangest part is he is willing to attend a trial under Veritaserum or any known truth potion. Without further ado, let's see the letter, which is slightly edited for use of profanity._

Greetings to everyone reading this. I am Sirius Black. You might not believe that just from the words on a letter, so I am attaching my blood sample with it. Check it with the ministry people.

I am known as a mass murderer by the Wizarding World and a traitor by my friends. Sad thing is I am innocent. I don't expect anyone to believe me, but I am willing to attend a fair trial under Veritaserum or any truth potion I know of. If the ministry promises me a trial that will be held in front of audience instead of a closed door trial, I promise to hand myself in.

If you wonder what happened in my first trial, let me tell you something. I didn't have a trial back then. The authority threw me straight to Azkaban. Again, check with the ministry, but I doubt they'll show you such important documents, which, incidentally, does not exist.

I have captured the real criminal and I'm sure he will be able to confess everything under Veritaserum too. I'm usually a soft guy, but I won't discourage an unforgivable against him, either. And trust me when I say you'll be surprised to know the name of the actual criminal.

So till the ministry makes a public oath to grant me a fair trial, keep living in horror that I might come and kill your family at the dead of the night. Just kidding. I never did anything like that nor do I plan to do so in future. Personally, I think all the dementors placed to catch me are causing more fear than me.

I'll be waiting for your answer, Fudge.

Sirius Black

_So that was the letter from Black and we at the Prophet did try to ask the minister if Black's claim of not having a trial was true. He refused to answer and his bodyguards were quite impolite with the reporter. But the absence of denial from them leads us to believe that Black's claim is likely to be true._

_The Wizarding world will be waiting for an answer from the Ministry and we all hope that Black receives a fair trial and the real criminal would be punished._

"I didn't expect the Prophet to support me." Sirius said as he put the newspaper down with a smile. He was sitting with Andromeda and Amelia at Amelia's place. He was still a bit wary of having tea with the Head of DMLE, but he didn't let it show. And Amelia was a nice person once she was done with interrogating.

"They just like to complain against the ministry whenever they get a chance." Amelia replied with a scowl.

"To be fair, complaining against the ministry isn't that hard given the way Fudge runs the country. I heard they cut down the Aurors' budget again?" Andromeda asked Amelia.

"Don't get me started. I tried to tell Fudge that we should hire more Aurors if a criminal escaped from Azkaban. He just insists it would be a dementor who would catch him. And with those horrible creatures guarding the ministry entrance..." she trailed off and Sirius nodded understandingly.

A tawny owl soared in through the window and dropped a letter on Amelia's lap.

"That's Fudge's owl" muttered the recipient. She opened the seal on the letter and read it. It was very short, and it was urgent.

"I gotta leave Andy. And you," she pointed at Sirius, "keep a low profile. Don't let anyone see you. Fudge wants me right away."

A moment later, she apparated in her office. Quickly sending a flyer, she rushed to the minister's office where Fudge was sitting with his Undersecretary Umbridge. Amelia groaned mentally. That toad would kill precious time by putting forth her prejudiced and stupid opinions, and for reasons best known only to himself, Fudge always valued her opinions.

"Come in Amelia." Umbridge said in her fake sugary voice. Amelia ignored her and sat in front of the minister, facing away from the other woman.

"What are you going to do minister?" she asked the nervous looking man.

"I don't know, why Black had to go to the press with it. If I take the wrong decision, there's no chance public would forget it."

"I suggest we ask him to come to Wizengamot and when he turns up, the Aurors capture him and throw him back to Azkaban, where he belongs." Umbridge said importantly.

Amelia looked at Fudge and said in a slightly mocking tone, "Isn't that morally wrong, minister? Imagine how much popularity you will gain when the public learns that you double crossed an innocent person who-"

"That's nonsense." Umbridge huffed. Finally Amelia turned to her.

"What is?"

"Black is a criminal. He deserves to be in Azkaban."

"And how are you sure of that given that he had no trial in the first place? You might have forgotten, but I clearly told you and the minister that there weren't any documents to suggest that Sirius Black had a trial. So unless we are here to waste some valuable time in pointless arguments, I suggest we decide quickly. All the guy wants is a fair trial under Veritaserum. I don't know how that could possibly be a bad thing." She finished, looking intently at the minister.

"Yes, that is indeed a fair demand, but as Dolores was saying just before you came in, Black could just attack everyone in the court and hold someone hostage or something..." he finished lamely. Amelia fought hard not to roll her eyes.

"Well minister, if you continue to cut down the budget of the Auror department and fire all the good wands, Black might have a chance against the remaining five or six trainees. If we place Aurors in the court and all around the ministry, however, I assure you Black will be safe to handle."

"But placing Aurors all around the ministry would take more Aurors than we currently have." Fudge said in a miserable voice.

"Rehire the old ones. And let this be a lesson for the future so that we won't be unprepared next time someone potentially dangerous has to be brought inside the ministry."

"Are you trying to imply that the minister's decision to encourage more international relations was wrong?" Umbridge said sweetly. Amelia closed her eyes for a moment to control her temper and then replied very slowly.

"Yes, I am. The idea was stupid. And if the idea wasn't just from you, minister, allow me to say that the person who suggested you this is very short-sighted and not worthy of listening to in the future." She saw with satisfaction that Umbridge's face became red.

Fudge tried to back up his Undersecretary. Looking between the two women, he started, "Now Amelia, no need to-"

"I expect to receive the date of that trial by today, minister. No point in unnecessary delay." Amelia said in a cool tone that would make Andromeda proud, and disapparated.

_A/N: let me know how it was. Harry and the Weasleys will feature the next chapter along with other things. Reviews encourage me to write more._


	20. Crouch and the Trial

_A/N: Thanks to Arct1cfox for the 400__th__ review. Eid Mubarak to all the muslims reading it._

**20. Crouch and the Trial**

"Hey Harry."

Harry looked up from his potions book to see Ginny standing beside the armchair he was occupying. He felt a little anticipation. He wasn't with the best of terms with Ron after he 'lost' Scabbers. He tried to explain Ron that he was not going to harm Scabbers in any way and it was purely Ron's fault that Scabbers escaped as he was planning to hand him back to Ron once Crookshanks came out of the dorm. But Ron maintained that it was Harry's fault as he scared Scabbers off and now the rat was nowhere to be seen. Even Fred and George, who looked a bit ashamed at revealing the plan to their brother, pointed out that if Ron didn't curse Harry, Scabbers would still be there. But Ron was stubborn and even went on to say that Harry has killed Scabbers. The twins didn't find that amusing, and hexed Ron's mouth, so that every time he tried to say something, an ugly green, smelly and viscous liquid came out of his mouth. Apparently, the taste was bad enough that Ron was silent for a whole day and half.

"Hello Ginny. How are you doing?" he motioned a hand at her, telling her to sit down. She sat cautiously, as if thinking over something very carefully.

"I'm okay. Ron's being a prat to me and the twins, but he is a prat most of the time anyway, so it's nothing different, really." She replied.

"Err... I'm sorry that I've placed you in a difficult position with your brother-" Harry started, but Ginny cut him off.

"Don't be. He always used to moan about how pathetic Scabbers was, and wanted to lose him in the hopes that mum would buy him a new one. Come to think of it, maybe mum will buy him a new pet and he'll actually be happier. But then again, she might shout at him saying that it was his fault that he lost Scabbers." Ginny grinned at the thought of Ron getting a good verbal lashing. Harry smiled, thinking of the odd relation between siblings.

"Is Scabbers safe?" Ginny suddenly asked.

"How would I know? He escaped, didn't he?" Harry answered, not quite meeting her eyes. Ginny sighed.

"You went after Scabbers and couldn't catch him? I know that Harry Potter doesn't fail anything if he sets his mind on it." Harry blushed deeply.

"Who told you that? I can't do everything, and I couldn't catch Pet...Scabbers, I told you."

Ginny gave him a nice-try-better-luck-fooling-me-next-time look.

"Don't worry, I didn't tell anyone, nor do I plan to. I trust you." She said with a smile and went away.

Harry stared after her.

...

As it turned out, Fudge couldn't rehire the fired Aurors. When letters from the minister were sent to a dozen of skilled ex-Aurors, almost all of them replied with interesting suggestion on who the ministry should hire for protection. Their list included succubus, house elves and hippogriffs. The more bold ones wrote that something regarding Fudge and Umbridge mating in unconventional ways.

A thoroughly embarrassed Fudge had to, therefore, trust the remaining Aurors and pray that Black wasn't a super powerful wizard who could defeat the thirty Aurors that were to guard the ministry. Fudge wanted everyone from the barracks, but Amelia pointed out that in that case all the critical points of the country would remain unguarded and there would be no one to respond in case of emergency.

Fudge's fear was proved pointless as Sirius Black came quietly, handed a box labelled 'EVIDENCE' to a nervous clerk and took his seat in the middle of the circular courtroom. The chains bound him immediately on the orders of the Minister. He put on an easy grin on his face, but inside he felt like a hurricane of nerves. He broke out of Azkaban, and he didn't know what level of punishment that would hand him. He didn't ask Amelia or Andromeda because he didn't want to know the answer.

Before the trial started, Sirius stole a glance at Andromeda, who was sitting in the spectators' bench. She wasn't a part of Wizengamot, but Amelia managed a spectator seat for her because she couldn't bear to stay at home. She gave him a subtle assuring nod.

After introducing everyone important in the court, Albus Dumbledore, the judge, asked, "Do you, Sirius Orion Black, agree to be questioned under Veritaserum?" Sirius rolled his eyes and said, "Yep, I do."

It might seem very polite of the court to ask permission from the tried person to administer Veritaserum, but it was actually a law put forward by some dark influential families, centuries before. Veritaserum couldn't be administered to everyone. Only people charged with serious crimes like murder, national treachery and a few more could be force-fed Veritaserum. In other cases, the victim had to agree to take the potion. The Wizengamot explained that is was to prevent political opponents of the victims finding out unrelated-to-the-case secrets just by randomly asking them something. When you are asked something while the effect of Veritaserum was still there, you couldn't give a wrong answer... or even keep quiet. Actually, the makers of the law made sure that their dark secrets didn't get exposed to the world in a simple trial like unpaid tax. Right now, Sirius had no charges against him, as his trial never took place and this was a voluntary confession he was making.

An Auror came forward and asked Sirius to open his mouth. He obliged and three drops of the clear liquid was dropped on his tongue. That would last an hour. If the trial went on for more than that, more three drops would be fed.

"Your name?" asked Cornelius Fudge.

"Sirius Orion Black, also known as Padfoot." He replied monotonously.

"Where are you from?"

"Grimmauld Street, London."

"Are you a Death Eater?"

"No."

"Were you ever associated in any ways to the dark wizard named... err... You-Know-Who?"

Dumbledore interrupted at this point.

"I do not recall any wizard, dark or otherwise, who is named You-Know-Who." He said, his moustache quivering. Fudge looked slightly irritated and slightly sheepish.

"You know what I mean Dumbledore. So did you ever have connections to You-Know-Who?"

"Nope, never saw a good reason to get tortured in exchange of my service." Lucius Malfoy's eyes darkened at that.

"Hem hem."

Everyone turned to look at the toad faced undersecretary.

"Why did you kill Peter Pettigrew?" Umbridge asked in a sickly sweet voice.

"I didn't." There was an outbreak of whispers at this. Umbridge's face got uglier.

"But he's lying!" she shouted over the noise. Sirius actually laughed.

"Under Veritaserum? Are you as stupid as you look?"

Almost everyone laughed at this and Umbridge's face became red.

"I won't be spoken to like that, you-"

"ORDER!" Dumbledore banged his hammer and everyone became silent.

As the trial was going on, Bartemius Crouch was trying to figure out a way to escape the disgrace that would surely come after the trial was over. Unfortunately for him, he came up with none. He wished he granted Black a trial when the man begged him for one. He wasn't feeling sympathetic for the man who spent twelve years in Azkaban for nothing, no. His imprisonment was a necessity of the war. He did suffer, true, but the criminals of the country knew that no one could escape from him. His comfort and freedom was sacrificed for the war. And it worked well. The capture of Black and the Lestranges made sure that the criminals thought twice before going dark.

But then his son messed it all up.

He was never a family man. He married the most intelligent pureblood girl from Hogwarts' 1958 batch, seven years his junior. It wasn't like the girl and he have met. He just looked at the list of the Head Girls in that decade for the girl with best grades and simply sent a proposal to the girl's father. Arnold Coutcher was pleased at the proposal as Crouch was a prominent member of the DMLE back then.

Three years after their marriage, his wife said she wanted a baby. He clearly told her that he had no time to raise a child right now. As a result, his wife refrained from talking to him for three straight weeks. It took him two weeks to notice that. He wasn't one to chat uselessly with a woman after he came home. Office tired him out and he ate the dinner provided by Winky and went to sleep. When he asked her the whereabouts of his muggle clothing at the end of those two weeks, he noticed that instead of the usual smiling face, his wife had a very dark look and just handed him the costume without speaking. At first, he didn't think much of it, but after another week of the same treatment, her father came to talk with him. He frankly told him that her daughter was very unhappy and was even thinking of a divorce. Crouch was absolutely bewildered by that. She had wealth, comfort and an influential husband. What on earth was she unhappy for? Sighing, his father-in-law explained that she was deeply hurt by his casual disregard of her opinion about a child. Crouch got defiant and repeated that he didn't have time for a child and his wife should understand that.

Arnold Coutcher was a man who was feared by his opponents and respected by his friends and associates. He also happened to love his daughter very much. He simply told his son-in-law that if he couldn't learn to respect his daughter's feelings, he would have to suffer the consequences. No one hurt her daughter, physically or mentally, and got away with it. Crouch wasn't stupid. He knew Arnold Coutcher didn't make empty threats, and to be honest, the man helped him a lot to rise through the ministry. He had the power to end his career within a week.

Next day, he went to his wife and apologised profusely. What followed next was very uncomfortable and quite irritating for him: an emotional conversation. His wife told him about her dreams to raise a family and care for them and such nonsense. Barty Crouch was never a fan of emotions. He considered them useless and often hindering success. Still, he didn't want to risk Arnold Coutcher unhappy with him. He said he would try to get a child after a year.

After four years, Bartemius Crouch Jr. was born. Despite his resentment towards raising children, he started to enjoy little Barty's company. When he went to Hogwarts, he was pleased to see that his son never failed to be the top of his year. Though he never gave any sign to the boy about it, he was quite proud of his son. Trouble begun when Barty Crouch Jr. graduated. He didn't want to work in the ministry like his father. He wanted to be a teacher. Needless to say, Crouch Sr. wasn't happy about the decision. He downright forbade his son to be a teacher, because in his opinion, teaching wasn't a profession worthy of a man in his status. Besides, a school teacher had next to no power. He drilled in his son's head that without power and respect, life was meaningless. Though his son wasn't happy, that message sank in his head.

With Voldemort rising and causing terror, Crouch failed to notice how little time his son spent at home. His wife tried to tell him that, but he was not interested in the abnormalities of a teenager. He worked on as hard as he could, and as a result, he climbed through the ministry in an unbelievable speed. As soon as Voldemort fell, he was made the head of his department and he quickly ordered his Aurors to give as they got. For the first time, Aurors were allowed to kill where capture was difficult. He gave trial to some and others were simply thrown to Azkaban, or kissed, depending on their offences. He was ecstatic when Bellatrix and the other Lestranges were found. However, when he saw the fourth face, his world crashed down on him. A small part of him was angry at his son for joining Voldemort, but the larger part of him knew that his chance of becoming the Minister of Magic just died.

True to his prediction, after most of the escaped Death Eaters were rounded up, he was transferred to the Department of International Relations. From that moment onwards, he became a shadow of the driven ruthless leader he once used to be. When his wife begged him to arrange the switch between his son and her, it brought back all the disgrace that came with his son. But then he remembered that if he listened to her when she told him about their son going off the track, he would've been the Minister right now. Reluctantly, he granted his wife's wish in the hope that listening to her just this one time might help him.

And now, his past has come back to give him yet another blow. He was sure that his career was over. Fudge wasn't going to support him, he considered Crouch a potential opponent, and he would probably fire him as soon as he could. Bitterly, he turned his thoughts toward the trial.

"So who killed Pettigrew?" Fudge was asking impatiently.

"No one." Sirius answered, enjoying the minister's irritation and confusion.

"What do you mean by that Mr. Black?" this time Amelia asked, even though she knew everything about it.

"Pettigrew is alive." Sirius replied with a smirk, knowing that it would cause a huge reaction. And it did. Everyone present started whispering quite loudly.

"And where is he?" Amelia asked before any stupid question was thrown by Fudge or Umbridge.

"In my evidence box. He's got it."

"Mr. Diggory, would you be so kind to bring that box here?" Amelia asked.

"This man is clearly crazy. How can Pettigrew be alive and be in a box?" Umbridge shrieked and Dumbledore had to bang his hammer to bring silence.

The next part of the trial went just as Sirius wanted it to go. Pettigrew was released from his cage and animagus transformation was forced on him. Amelia immediately charged him of muggle slaughter, Death Eater activities and national treachery. The Potters were named as national heroes and treachery to them was equivalent to national treachery.

Peter didn't struggle when Veritaserum was administered. He gave up all hopes of living long before. Under the potion's effect, he confessed everything. Joining as a Death Eater, leaking information to Voldemort, betrayal of Potters, blasting twelve muggles and framing Sirius. He admitted that he lived as a rat for the last twelve years. Thankfully, no one thought to ask where he lived these years and the Weasleys never knew how much rouble they escaped from just from that little mistake. He was sentenced to Azkaban for life and he quietly went with the Aurors, weeping for what laid ahead.

After he was taken away, the first person to speak was Lucius Malfoy. The cunning man knew he had to keep a good image in front of the Lord Black, because he stole a lot from the Black vaults through his wife in these twelve years.

"I suggest the court declares Lord Black free of all charges and compensate for his time in Azkaban." He said in a smooth, convincing tone. Amelia seconded that, and soon Sirius was cleared of all charges. However, Dolores Umbridge had one last question for him.

"Hem hem."

When she had the attention of everyone, she went on.

"Mr. Black, who provided you shelter after you escaped?" she asked in that infuriating voice of hers. Still being under the effects of Veritaserum, Sirius couldn't stop from answering.

"Andromeda Tonks."

"And where is she?" she asked, looking around the courtroom. Amelia Bones was ready to kill the evil witch.

"Right here." Andromeda said without any expression, standing up from the spectators' seat.

"Wonderful. Since Mr Black was cleared just moments ago, he was still considered a criminal when he broke out of Azkaban. Mrs Tonks, you are hereby charged of harbouring a convicted criminal."


	21. Stupid Ministry Workers

**21. Stupid Ministry Workers **

"Wonderful. Since Mr Black was cleared just moments ago, he was still considered a criminal when he broke out of Azkaban. Mrs Tonks, you are hereby charged of harbouring a convicted criminal."

Fudge mentally groaned. There goes 'good public image'. He noticed the reporters on the spectators' bench scribbling away and wanted to bang his head on the table. Though, he considered himself to be lucky that that awful Skeeter woman was banned from the courtrooms for suggesting (a bit strongly) that Wizengamot members gifted prostitutes to each other in order to buy their votes in a trial. Many of the members were Lords of Noble and Ancient houses and wanted to declare blood feud with the Skeeter family. Unfortunately, Skeeter was able to prove two such incidents in the last three century, and along with the 'Freedom of Speech of the Press Act' and the fact that she didn't target a specific family, she got away with a seven years ban from the Wizengamot Courtroom. Amelia Bones went on to ward all the courtrooms to eject her if she ever sneaked in using a Disillusionment Charm or an Invisibility Cloak. She would put nothing past that woman when it came to digging dung.

Umbridge was wearing a triumphant smile on her face. At least she got the criminal's sidekick even if he escaped justice this time.

"You can't do that." Andromeda said flatly. Umbridge's smile got wider. However, this time Amelia started to smile too. Toad face just messed with the wrong person. It would be good to watch.

"I believe I just did." Umbridge's voice sounded like a teen girl who was just asked out by the most handsome guy in the world.

Andromeda smirked, which faltered Umbridge's smile.

"Really? Do you have any proof that I ever harboured a convicted criminal?"

Umbridge was a bit confused. Was the woman stupid or just messing with her?

"We all heard Mr. Black's confession under Veritaserum that you provided him shelter-"

Andromeda cut her off. "What's your name again? Oh, never mind that, who cares what's your name. You are the Minister's Undersecretary, right?"

A red-faced Umbridge dumbly nodded. Andromeda smiled a predatory smile.

"Madam Bones, can I ask you something?" she asked her friend, who was fighting to hide her grin. She nodded.

"What are the requirements for the post this woman holds? Come to think of it, is there any requirement at all?"

Taking a moment to hold in the laughter, Amelia answered calmly.

"Nothing extraordinary. Four OWLs and two NEWTs, one of which should be Government and Politics. And you have to be a pureblood. The requirements were a bit higher previously, but they were dropped six years ago. Coincidentally, Madam Umbridge joined just after that. Why do you ask Mrs Tonks?"

"Well, I was merely wondering why someone with a questionable understanding of the English language was appointed for the post. Clearly, the requirements don't... err... require it, so who am I to complain?" she then turned to Umbridge, who was gaping like a freshly caught fish and continued. "You see Madam whatever-your-name-is, Lord Black here was never convicted. You know, convicted means accused and sentenced for a specific crime in an unbiased trial. Incidentally, Lord Black didn't have any of those, so your charge is quite... ah... baseless. Did I use any big words, Lord Black?" she added the last part, turning towards Sirius with a concerned look. Sirius put on a thoughtful look before answering.

"I think even your daughter would understand that clearly."

"Not really a helpful comment, Sirius."

"Okay, maybe an average eleven year old would get it too."

Andromeda looked critically at Umbridge as if yet undecided if that was good enough for her. Fudge decided to interfere before Umbridge was further humiliated.

"Okay, Mrs. Tonks, you made your point. There aren't any charges against you. You may sit now."

"Not yet, Minister." Andromeda replied with an evil grin that scared Fudge.

"W... What do you mean?" he asked nervously.

"You see, when your Undersecretary accused me in front of the whole Wizengamot, I felt quite harassed. So I press charges against that... err... woman for public harassment."

"But that act is only for Ancient families like mine, foolish woman." Umbridge sneered at her.

"Madam Bones, add a second charge. Oh dear, harassed twice on the same day, not my lucky day, is it?"

"But-" Umbridge started, but Amelia cut her off.

"Madam Umbridge, I suggest you refrain from speaking if you do not wish to cause further damage."

Andromeda glared at her friend. Fudge tried to support his Undersecretary.

"Mrs. Tonks, Madam Umbridge is actually correct. The right to press charges of public harassment is reserved only to members of Ancient houses. I am afraid I don't recognize you as a member of any of those families."

"Ever heard of the Most Noble and Ancient House of Black, Minister?" Sirius interrupted.

"Of course, that's your family, Mr. Black. But this woman-"

"Was previously known as Andromeda Elizabeth Black." Sirius finished Fudge's sentence. Umbridge paled and the Minister flinched. Offence against Most Noble and Ancient Houses could ruin a lesser house. Umbridge's house was labelled as Ancient just a few years back. After she got the post of the Undersecretary, to be precise.

Amelia decided to start the trial quickly.

"Judge Dumbledore, the court presents the offender Dolores Jane Umbridge and the offended Andromeda Elizabeth Tonks née Black."

Dumbledore, who was particularly enjoying the little drama in front of him, nodded in agreement.

"Mrs. Tonks, I was under the impression that you are no longer a member of the Black family." Said the smooth voice of Lucius Malfoy.

"Hello Malfoy. I was reinstated yesterday. You'll find that the goblins are quite helpful when they are properly dealt with. I heard you saw a lot of the Black Vault recently?"

Malfoy quickly replied, "My apologies. And about the vault, I was merely accompanying my wife-"

"That will be enough." Dumbledore said in a loud voice and Andromeda smirked at the blonde peacock.

The trial was over very quickly. Umbridge didn't have any defence for her actions and the whole Wizengamot was witness.

"Dolores Jane Umbridge, you are fined the amount of 200,000 galleons for each offence, meaning a total of 400,000 galleons which must be paid to Mrs. Tonks here within three days. Failure to do so will enable Mrs. Tonks to claim all your Gringotts vaults. Any questions?" Dumbledore asked a horrified looking Umbridge, but it was Andromeda who spoke up.

"Judge Dumbledore, I seem to recall that there is a law passed on 1723 regarding the House of Black. I wish to put that on effect." As the head of a very powerful and influential family even back then, Eridanus Black managed to pass a law against any lower House who offended the Black family in any way.

It took a few minutes for Dumbledore to search for that law, but when he did, he was very much surprised.

"Isn't that too harsh for a bit of name calling, Mrs. Tonks?" when Andromeda didn't reply, Dumbledore sighed and announced the final sentence.

"According to the Offence Against the House of Black Law, the House of Umbridge is stripped of its privileges of being an Ancient House permanently and its voting seat in the Wizengamot will be claimed by the Most Noble and Ancient House of Black. As a result, Madam Umbridge will lose her voting power in the court, but can stay strictly as a Ministry employee."

"You are wicked, Meda!" Sirius shouted in glee as Umbridge shrieked.

...

The Daily Prophet did a massive cover about Sirius Black's trial next day. It went on to say how there was no shred of evidence that Sirius Black, the heir of the Most Noble and Ancient House of Black, ever hurt a fly and that the Ministry should have thought about checking the proper trial papers before checking in a new prisoner to Azkaban. They also strongly approved of the Ministry's act of firing Bartemius Crouch, who was the Head of DMLE when Black was captured by the Aurors, and immediately charged him for misuse of law and justice for throwing Mr. Black to prison without conducting a trial. Then it proceeded to quote a pretty big speech from the minister who said that his government is strongly against any misuse of law and that the unfortunate incident with Mr. Black was purely the previous minister Boris Bagnold and Bartemius Crouch's fault. He also insisted that he would look at the archives to look for any other cases where justice was not served by the previous, short-sighted government. He also claimed that the ministry is immensely sorry for Mr Black's sufferings and promised to pay him compensation. The reporter then pointed out that the ministry might not be as pleased with Black receiving justice as the minister's undersecretary tried to frame Black's cousin Andromeda Tonks in a completely groundless charge; though she did suffer for trying to mess with a Black. But it couldn't be denied that with the Dementors sent back to Azkaban, the general mood of the country lifted considerably.

"Oh, they tried to screw with mum?" Dora laughed and Harry chuckled too. One does not simply mess with Andromeda and get away with it.

"We have to tell everyone else, don't we?" he asked her quietly. She stopped laughing and sighed before nodding.

"I want Ginny and the twins to be there too." He pressed on. She looked surprised for a moment, but understood. After all, Pettigrew was their 'pet rat' for twelve years. They were lucky that they didn't have any troubles for that.

"Why not Ron too?" she asked, still feeling a bit cross with the tactless boy, who almost let Pettigrew escape. Harry frowned. Apparently, he wasn't happy with him either.

"They can tell him later. I don't know how he might react and I am not looking forward to dealing with him." Tonks just nodded in understanding and patted his shoulders. There was a comfortable silence between them and she just leaned her head on his shoulders.

"I'll miss you, Harry." Tonks said very quietly. Harry looked at her and understood what she meant.

"I'll miss you too, Dora. I don't know how will I go along in this place without you." He admitted without any embarrassment. Over the years, they developed a friendship... maybe something stronger, and both of them knew that they would rarely meet after Dora graduated. If her NEWTs grades were good enough, (Harry assured her that she could achieve them, no matter how much she moaned that she was gonna fail everything) she would be joining the Auror's Academy and depending on how fast she could learn things, she was hoping to become an Auror within two or three years. Everyone knew that the Aurors were among the most highly paid Ministry workers, but they were also the busiest ones. Aurors could be gone for even months at a time for a mission. And there is always the possibility of something bad happening on these missions. Not to mention the insane amount of paperwork they had to do. But Amelia once told her that when you capture a criminal and know that he won't be able to harm any more families, all the trouble was worth it.

Harry, on the other hand, had four more years at Hogwarts to finish. From what he heard from Dora, he wanted to be an Auror too, but that was getting too much ahead of himself. Meanwhile, he would miss Dora's company. They would still probably meet at Christmases or Easters, but that was not enough in his opinion after spending the most of three years with her. And who knew if the Dora who would return from a vigorous Auror training session would still be the same? Maybe she wouldn't enjoy a teenager boy's company like she did now. Maybe she would meet a charming guy and Harry would feel boring, or even annoying to her. The thoughts did horrible things to his stomach.

"You'll have Sue, Neville, Hermione and Hannah. And the Weasleys like you too. You will likely forget about me after a while and with that cute charm of yours, you'll soon be snogging all the pretty girls. I would just be an annoying, old girl to you." She said the with fake tears, but the thought made her sad too-

"No one will replace you, Dora. You're my favourite girl, remember?" he said with a mischievous smile. Maybe he was joking, but the words made the metamorphmagus unbelievingly happy. She kissed him on the cheek for it, and for the first time, he didn't blush. Instead, he just smiled and ruffled her hair. Together, they sat on the top of the Astronomy Tower, arms over each other, watching as the sun was sinking back to the horizon.

...

They sat on a circle on the Gryffindor common room. Tonks placed a privacy charm so that didn't need to worry about being overheard. Tonks and Harry just told everyone about Peter Pettigrew, and how he betrayed his parents and framed Sirius, his godfather, for his crimes. Then he revealed that it was them who captured the rat, who was disguised as Ron's pet rat, Scabbers. Harry expected Ginny to look smug at being right, but she merely looked disgusted that a Death Eater was at their home for twelve years, and happy that the rat got what he deserved. He explained them all that he wanted to tell all these to them before, but Andromeda made them promise not to tell this to anyone for security reasons. They all understood and assured that everyone had the right to keep secrets. The Weasleys thanked Harry and Tonks for not getting them in to any trouble and Ginny asked if she could tell her parents about it. Harry didn't see what harm it could, but still asked her to tell them on person rather than in a letter.

Speaking of letters, an owl was trying to get through Tonks' privacy dome. She recognised it as their family owl, Walter. Quickly negating the charm, she held out her arm and the owl sat down on it. The letter tied on her leg was addressed to 'Harry and Dora'. She opened the letter and beckoned Harry to join her. The letter was very short.

_Harry and Dora,_

_Keep the Map always with you, and check it every now and then. Pettigrew has escaped from the Aurors on the way to Azkaban._

_Andromeda_

They looked at each other with matching angry looks.


	22. Loose Ends

_A/N: to __**FreeChaosHunter-**__ it would be appreciated if you keep your opinions to yourself and put those 'dirty fingers' of yours to places where the sun doesn't shine._

_Apart from that, I deeply sympathise with the people who have suffered in Sandy's hands. I sincerely hope none of my readers or their friends/family were victims._

**22. Loose Ends**

This wasn't the situation Cornelius Fudge wanted to see himself in. He was having a horrible day since he was informed about the escape of Peter Pettigrew. Now he had to face the press and explain everything. Taking a deep breath, he entered the room. Immediately, journalists started questioning, and he felt a bit dizzy at the amount of questions coming at him. He pointed at a nervous looking woman. She gulped before questioning.

"Minister, how did Pettigrew escape from the Aurors even though he was outnumbered and without a wand?"

"As he admitted in the court, Pettigrew was an animagus. Unfortunately, the Aurors who were assigned to transfer him to Azkaban were not used to deal with animagus criminals. Pettigrew took advantage of that once they were on the boat. You see, it's rather difficult to find a rat in dark water." He chuckled half-heartedly, but no one seemed to find it funny.

"But surely experienced Aurors like them would have the common sense to raise a ward when they knew Pettigrew was an animagus?" another asked.

"Err... I guess you can say that these Aurors were kind of lacking in experience. They were the reserve Aurors." He said uncomfortably.

"Why would you appoint Aurors from the reserve to carry out such an important job? Where were the experienced Aurors, then?" a burly woman asked a bit aggressively.

"They were right here on the Ministry protecting our employees from Black, who was then supposed to be a criminal." He snapped at the reporter, who scribbled away furiously on a parchment.

"But according to the press release before the trial, we were said that only thirty Aurors were on the guard for the trial, and some of the most experienced Aurors were not amongst them. Where were they?"

"They were fired because their... err... performance wasn't as good as it used to be."

There was an instant uproar at that. Reporters recognized bullshits when they saw one.

"You fired all the experienced Aurors?"

"Was it because they were the most highly paid?"

"Are you closing down the Auror Department soon?"

The questions came like bullets and with a meek "That'll be all" Fudge almost ran from the room, two junior Aurors following him with a bit of distaste.

He wondered if cutting down the training time of the trainees at the Aurors' Academy to one and a half year would help. The training would be more concentrated and a bit short on details, but that with the likes of Alastor Moody and some old Aurors, it might be possible.

...

It seemed that Pettigrew wasn't in a hurry to be caught again, and eventually everyone admitted that there was no point of the extra security. A rat could practically go anywhere. Christmas was approaching soon, and Harry could be found with Sirius and Dora, making a list of things Dora should do before graduating.

"Don't you think that's kind of suicidal?" she was asking Sirius doubtfully.

"Not at all! James and I did that too." The man replied indignantly. Harry's mouth fell open.

"You mean to say you and my dad hugged McGonagall in her class and got away with it?" Harry asked incredulously.

Sirius smiled fondly and replied, "Oh yeah, we were Minnie's favourite, though she'd never admit. She even patted us back."

"And nothing else?" Tonks asked with unbelief. Sirius shrugged.

"Well, she threw a stinging hex at our butts, but she was smiling. Lily thought we were sweet to do that, but she wouldn't know that it was just a dare from Moony."

"Uh... okay, but I'm definitely not kissing Flitwick's cheek, he'll hex me good for sure."

"Don't worry, Lily did that in her last class. The old chap became quite emotional. She was, after all, one of his favourites."

"Wow, you guys were really Gryffindors. Any other ideas?"

Sirius looked thoughtful for a moment. Then he had an evil grin on his face.

"Here's a spell you might find handy with the Slytherins."

Andromeda appeared at that moment behind them to slap Sirius on the head.

"I'm a Slytherin, you dolt. Stop corrupting my daughter." She said with a smile. Harry snorted. It was more likely that Dora would spoil Sirius rather than the other way round.

"You are going to have a guest, Sirius." Andromeda said as their laughter died down. Sirius looked alarmed.

"Who would that be?"

"You'll see. And you two, get ready, Susan and Neville are coming in an hour."

Harry smiled at Andromeda, but Sirius was still frowning. Apparently, he wasn't expecting anyone.

Susan came first and Tonks shepherded her and Harry to her room. Susan was introduced to computer games, while Harry lay down on Tonks' bed. It was as soft as his bed, but it had a familiar, pleasant cherry like smell that he inhaled subtly. His face flushed a bit when he realized that it was the smell of Dora. Thankfully, she was busy instructing Sue on the game, so she didn't notice his pink cheeks.

"So you still want to be an Auror after school?" Susan asked Tonks and she nodded.

"That's my first choice. Of course with a useless trisexual like Fudge, who knows if I can actually get in?" she said with a bit of despair.

"Wait, how on earth can someone be...err... trisexual?" Harry asked dubiously.

"He likes to bang toads, from what I heard." She said with a snicker while Sue looked nauseated.

"Tonks, you know that's disturbing, don't you?"

They turned around to see Neville standing in the doorway.

"Neville! You almost scared us. Don't worry, I don't think Fudge would be interested with Trevor." Tonks said with a smirk. Neville's expression matched that of Susan.

As Tonks entertained her guests, Sirius was still badgering Andromeda.

"Please Meda, just tell me who is it?"

"I told you Sirius, you will see."

"But I wanna know now." Sirius whined. Andromeda gave him a 'are-you-actually-whining-about-this?' look. Sirius ignored it.

She sighed before answering. So much for a surprise.

"Jennifer. Jennifer Dawes."

Sirius looked like someone slapped him on the face. For a moment, he looked angry, but then it was replaced by genuine worry.

"How... how did you find her?" he asked quietly.

"I have my means, Sirius."

"Does she still look that beautiful?"

"Why don't you tell me that?"

Andromeda tried to hide a smile as Sirius turned around lightning fast to see a tall, willowy woman standing near the door.

"Hi." He managed to croak out after a minute of staring at her in shock. Andromeda quietly excused herself from the room that threatened to burst with awkwardness.

"Hi yourself." She replied in a slightly shaky voice.

"You look good." He said with a faint smile. She smiled back.

"Can't say the same to you. You still have a lot to recover."

They stared at each other for a long time, and it wasn't uncomfortable to either. They haven't seen each other for more than a decade and they were not in a hurry to look away. Both of them were remembering their time together and the time without each other. It was a bittersweet feeling. Finally she broke the silence.

"Why didn't you tell me?" there was a hint of accusation in her voice.

Sirius looked down, ashamed. He should have told her, but then again, he doubted if it would really have made a difference. "I thought I was protecting James and Lily. The more people knew, the weaker the protection would be. I'm sorry Jenny. For everything."

She slowly walked towards him and put an arm around his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her and they would be content staying like that forever.

"So what are you doing nowadays?" Sirius asked once they let go of each other. The awkwardness was returning by a little bit.

"A simple job as an editor, a quiet life. Nothing special."

"You are special enough to cover for a simple life." He said in an attempt to lift the mood. He was rewarded with a dazzling smile. _Oh Merlin! After all these years she still has that smile. How I missed that smile..._

"Seeing someone?" he asked nervously, half afraid of her answer, but still accepting the fact that he couldn't expect a beautiful woman like her to stay single for so many years.

However, his breathing stopped when she stooped down and caught his lips in a warm kiss. He didn't really care if the world was destroyed or a rat has escaped to help a murderer. All he cared about was that his Jenny was kissing him again, and he would go and break out of Azkaban ten times over just for this.

On the landing above, Susan was looking at Harry in a bewildered way as Tonks cried her eyes out. Harry recognized the symptoms from his first summer here and gave Susan a reassuring look and gently guided Dora back to her room. Tonks wanted to spy on Sirius' guest, and once they kissed, she almost bawled out.

"What's wrong with her?" Neville asked with an alarmed tone while Harry nudged her to sit down.

"She... er... has a strong reaction to romantic reunions." He explained briefly, making the other two even more confused, but he decided they could wait.

"Shh Dora, it's alright. They are happy and you should be happy for them too. It's okay, don't cry..." he kept murmuring in her ear as he had an arm around her. Sniffing loudly, she finally stopped crying and managed an embarrassed smile at them.

"Stupid, ain't I?"

"Definitely stupid!" Harry said somewhat proudly.

...

The rest of the school year passed quite normally. Harry and Andromeda were thanked immensely by the Weasleys, even Ron apologized to him for being a git. He was good friends with the twins and Ginny and they actually arranged the cat fight they used as the cover story. Crookshanks won, of course, and everyone was pleased to see Mrs. Norris limping behind Filch, glaring at everyone in sight. Neville and Hannah got even closer to each other, as did Harry and Dora. Andromeda informed them that after a bit of grovelling, Jennifer and Sirius were a couple again, which wasn't really a surprise, but pleasant to know, anyway. Hermione became less uptight, and even started to enjoy some pranks. Tonks did carry out the tasks set by Sirius, one of which included turning all the Slytherins' hair pink. Harry suspected McGonagall knew who the culprit was, but she merely looked bored when Snape was loudly complaining that it must be the handiwork of a 'stupid Gryffindor'. Apparently, Tonks' hug was well appreciated. Harry promised to do the same before he graduated.

On the last day of school, Harry came across a strange looking girl, who was happily posting notes on the walls, requesting people to return her belongings.

"Err... have you lost your stuff?" he asked her politely.

"Hello Harry Potter." She greeted him with a dreamy, musical voice. "I haven't lost them, exactly. People just like to hide my things." She said quite cheerfully.

"But that's horrible!" Harry exclaimed. The girl shook her head with a smile.

"Oh, it's all good fun. But since it is the last day, I really need my belongings back."

"You need any help?" he asked dubiously. Despite her strangeness, she was quite... he couldn't find the right word for it, but he regarded her as an interesting company, to say the least.

"No thanks, it's fine." She said with another smile.

"Umm... what's your name?"

"People call me Loony Lovegood." She said a bit sadly.

"What do your friends call you?" he asked, feeling a bit angry towards the so called people.

"Oh I don't have any friends. It would be nice to have one, though." She answered cheerfully and Harry was shocked by the bluntness of the girl. Looking at her robes, he saw that she was a Ravenclaw. The so called smart people hide a girl's belonging, call her 'Loony Lovegood' and no one makes friends with her?

"My dad calls me Luna, though." She continued thoughtfully. "He said when I was born, the nargles were going in a circle around the moon. Personally I think he was full of wrackspurts at the moment because nargles don't usually go on circles, but then again, without unusual things, life would get boring, don't you think?"

Harry dumbly nodded. He had no idea what nargles and wrackspurts were, but he could see that the small Ravenclaw had a very open mind, to put it mildly.

"So you are Luna Lovegood?" he checked with her before he would forget it. She nodded. He decided to be blunt with her too.

"Does it ever bother you that you are different from the people who call you 'Loony'?" He knew if she asked it to a normal girl, she would become offended, but he knew Luna wouldn't be, and he was proven right when a big smile appeared on her face.

"Not at all. My mum once told me a quote by a muggle. 'You all laugh at me because I am different. I laugh at you because you all are the same.' In fact, I secretly enjoy the fact that they can never see the nargles attacking their heads." She added in a low, conspiratory tone. Harry laughed with her. She was an odd bird, but an amazing one at that.

"So would you like to be my friend, Luna?" he asked uncertainly. He wouldn't dare to predict the girl's behaviour or activities. To his relief, she smiled.

"Oh, sure, Harry Potter, but I'm afraid I won't be much of a good friend. After all, I never had one before." She said in a slightly worried tone that Hermione would adopt when she has revised for a test less than five times.

"Don't worry about that, I'll make sure you are the best." He replied with a grin and extended his hand. She shook it quite firmly for someone so small.

An hour later, Tonks was eyeing him suspiciously.

"Did you snog someone, Harry?"

Harry scowled at her as Neville and Susan sniggered. Hermione and Hannah were too deep in their Muggle Studies discussion to notice.

"No, I just met a girl-"

"And you want to snog her?" Susan suggested. He glared at her.

"Maybe he just fancies her." Neville tried to reason, getting a stink eye from Harry.

"No, I don't fancy anyone nor do I want to snog anyone. I just met a girl and she was really strange and blunt, but she was so interesting that I made friends with her and now I feel that it was the right thing to do."

"So you don't fancy her?" Tonks confirmed. When he shook his head, she looked a bit... relieved.

"So why do you think you mad the right choice by befriending her?" Susan asked.

"She said she didn't have any friends."

"What sort of person doesn't have any friends? Even I have a few." Neville said.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Hannah, who was now following their conversation.

"I mean I'm a slouch and pretty much useless guy, and still I have great friends-"

"You are not a slouch nor useless." Hannah said slowly and firmly. Neville looked quite alarmed and nodded quickly. Harry, Tonks and Susan caught each others' arm and smirked. The boy is already whipped.

"Who was the girl, Harry?" Hermione asked.

"Luna Lovegood."

"Oh, her." She replied with a dismissive tone.

"Is there anything wrong with her?" he asked her.

"No, she just believes in things that do not exist." Hermione huffed.

"How do you know they don't exist?" Harry said a bit hotly. Hermione was defiant.

"Well, I didn't find them in any credible book."

Harry sighed. Hermione was very clever, but she couldn't think outside her books.

"Tell me Hermione, was there any mention of magic in the books you read before you came to know about wizards?"

Hermione shook her head thoughtfully.

"So why do you think everything that exists or happens would be recorded in a book that you have read? I know you read a lot more than all of us combined, but isn't it possible that you haven't read a few books?" he asked the deflated witch.

"Maybe what you are saying is right. But-"

"I'm not asking you to believe everything she says. Just respect her beliefs and don't put her down, okay?"

Hermione nodded a bit shamefully. "I guess I can do that."

When he turned around, he was met with six wide eyes staring at him.

"What?" he said defensively, feeling self-conscious.

"Nice speech, Harry." Susan commented. Harry grimaced at her.

The rest of the day passed with fun activities. Tonks was determined to make her last day at Hogwarts memorable and the Twins and Ginny felt that it was their duty to carry out as many pranks as possible. She snuck out to Hogsmead to bring some butterbeer and a bottle of Firewhiskey. She said that the Firewhiskey was for midnight celebration with Edward and Hestia, and possibly other roommates. Harry forgot how popular Tonks was amongst her year mates as she spent a lot of her time around him. Now as he saw her hugging almost every Seventh Year Hufflepuffs, Gryffindors and some Ravenclaws and even a couple of Slytherin, and then students from lower years, he knew that she would be missed by more than a few person. He watched her as she boarded the Hogwarts Express for the last time as a student, roamed around the train to say last minute goodbyes to her friends, and finally came back to the compartment, where she burst out in tears. Harry didn't say anything. He just provided her his shoulder to lean her head on, and occasionally run his hand through her black hair. After she dried out, she looked at him with a sad smile.

"How am I going to live without you babe?" she asked with a sniff.

Harry was asking himself the same question.

_A/N: Unimportant chapter, but I felt like you would like to read it. Tell me if I was right._


	23. New Beginning

_A/N: When I started writing this story, I would never have guessed that this little piece will one day gain more than 500 reviews and 140K+ views. To all the readers out there, who does or doesn't review, I thank you. You are truly great._

_And __**fatemask**__gets the virtual candies for the 500__th__ review. Enjoy!_

**23. New Beginning**

_**Ex Head of DMLE Killed**_

_Bartemius Crouch Sr., recently fired Head of International Relations and former Head of DMLE, was found dead yesterday at his residence. Mediwizard Thomas Road confirmed the Daily Prophet that Crouch was hit by a Killing Curse. His distraught elf, Winky, claims that she was working when the murder took place, and was hence unable to see who did it. Amos Diggory, from the Department of Magical Creatures, appealed to Wizengamot for the permission of using Truth Potion on the elf. However, the court denied the appeal, stating that there was no firm ground on which the elf could be accused. The Chief Warlock also pointed out that Truth Potions are designed for humans, and might not work similarly on House Elves._

_Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic, stated that the murder of a former ministry employee would be investigated carefully and the culprits would be punished according to the law. A member of the DMLE, who wishes to be anonymous, hinted that Peter Pettigrew was a strong suspect of this murder._

_To read more about Barty Crouch, turn to page 4._

"Blimey, I didn't like the man, but why would Wormtail kill him?" Sirius wondered loudly as Andromeda tipped a few sausages on his plate.

"Maybe he didn't." Ted suggested thoughtfully. "I don't know what he would gain by killing Crouch."

A plate of bacon gracefully landed on the table by a wave of Andromeda's wand, and both men helped themselves enthusiastically.

"Good morning Sirius, Andromeda, Ted." Harry greeted them cheerfully. A sleepy Tonks followed, mumbling incoherently.

The adults greeted them back and Andromeda added two more plates at the table, depositing eggs on them.

"Breakfast smells good, doesn't it Dora?" he poked her below the ribs and she yelped in surprise.

"Whass gotchya so cheery this early?" she asked indignantly.

"It's your result day." He said with a wide grin, which grew wider as he saw her expression change from irritated to shock and to panic.

"Holy mother of Merlin! Today's result? Could've reminded me yesterday!" she wailed and everyone chuckled at her reaction.

"And miss the fun today? No thanks." Harry replied cheekily. Tonks glared at him, but it made him smile even more, so she gave up and grabbed a chair to sit down. Harry did the same, and started on his plate. Tonks, however, just nibbled away at a piece of bacon, and chewed her lips. Harry watched in amusement as her eyes would twitch randomly and how she shook her legs nervously and how she gulped at least once every minute. For some strange reason, the whole thing looked absolutely adorable to him.

"There's an owl." Sirius pointed at a speck in the sky that was steadily becoming larger. Harry looked at Tonks to make sure she was okay. Apart from all the teasing, he felt a bit nervous for her. She wanted so bad to be an Auror, and though Harry knew she would do alright, he couldn't shake off the little cloud of fear. He put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it as a show of support. Her face was pale and even her hair was white.

They were quite disappointed when the owl ignored her outstretched hand and went for Sirius. He looked at her apologetically, but she looked quite relieved.

"The goblins have news." Sirius told Andromeda after he finished reading. Andromeda raised an eyebrow and he continued. "Grimmauld Place would take a few months to be rebuilt and most of the wards made sure that the whole thing can't be taken down at once. They suggested we just change the interior and break down and build up a few walls here and there. I think that will be good enough, what do you say?"

"Sounds fine to me. Just make sure to remove some particular portraits." Andromeda replied.

"My mum put a permanent sticking charm on hers, or she would've been the first to go."

"Then break down the wall and rebuild it."

"Good idea. I'll write a reply to them." Sirius said before going inside for a parchment. The owl that brought the letter went to sit beside Hedwig and gave a hoot, but Hedwig ignored it pointedly.

_My owl's got attitude._ Harry thought proudly.

"If Sirius gets his home done, am I going to live with him?" Harry asked tentatively. He loved the Tonks family and they were practically his own family, but Sirius was his godfather, and sometimes he felt a bit bad for imposing on the Tonks' like this. He knew neither Andromeda nor Ted minded him being here, but the Dursleys gave him enough lecture about being a burden to stick the thought permanently.

"If you want to, you can. He is your legal guardian, after all. But nothing will make us happier if you choose to stay here." Andromeda replied with a kind smile.

That put him in a dilemma. If he chose to live with Sirius, they might think he didn't like them much, which was totally untrue. But if he chose to stay with them, Sirius would think the same and it wasn't true either.

"Can I live half of the time here and the other half with Sirius?" he asked hopefully and Andromeda smiled.

"Of course you can, now finish your breakfast before it-"

"THAT'S AN OWL!" Tonks yelled, pointing at the window, where a barn owl was getting in.

This time it was a letter with the Hogwarts seal on it. Tonks' hair was changing colours very quickly as she opened the seal with trembling fingers.

"Here goes nothing." She muttered before opening the official looking piece of parchment.

Harry watched as her eyes scanned the letter quickly, and from the panicked expression, it changed at first to relief, then to happiness.

"I PASSED! WOOHOOOOO!"

Everyone had to cover their ears.

...

After hugging Harry for the eleventh time, a hyper Tonks went to hug her mother one last time, which she gladly returned and then she burst into tears. Fortunately for everyone, they were tears of joy, so she was happy to be patted on the back by everyone and occasional hugs every now and then. Harry was quite bemused as he was her favourite target for really tight hugs, and it didn't help that his new hormones reacted with his chest pressed against quite a nice pair of breasts. If not for the tears, he would suspect she was doing it intentionally. However, Sirius came to his rescue as he told everyone about tickets to the World Cup he managed from someone.

"Really? How many do you have?" Tonks asked with interest, wiping the leftover tears from her cheek.

"For all of us, of course." Sirius said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Does all of us include Jennifer?" Harry teased and Sirius blushed a tiny bit.

"Erm... yeah, it does. You don't mind, do you?"

"As long as you're not doing... ah... inappropriate things, it's cool." Tonks replied cheerfully.

"Great, let me call her." He went for the floo and before throwing the powder to the fireplace, he grinned evilly and added, "Or maybe I'll just go and finish the inappropriate things now."

"SIRIUS!" four voices yelled in disgust as he disappeared through the fireplace.

"I was eating here!" Tonks complained to the fireplace, and as if on cue, it roared again and Amelia spun out of it.

"Do I smell bad?" she asked, seeing the grimaces in everyone's face.

"No, Sirius fooling around as usual. Sit down Amy." Andromeda waved at the empty chair.

"When do I apply for Auror Academy?" Tonks asked the woman.

"Got your results?"

"Yep. Nailed 'em." She replied with a grin and her parents looked at her proudly.

"Congrats! This deserves a toast." Amelia said with a smile.

"Did that three times so far." Harry said in a pained voice. Tonks smirked.

"Oh, good, then. You can apply right away. They will start training after two weeks, I think. And Fudge changed the programme. You will be ready to be an Auror by one year with the new close packed courses, but that means you will get no holidays in this one year."

"NO HOLIDAYS?" Tonks shouted and Harry's spirits dropped. He was hoping to see her in Christmas, at least.

"Nothing at all. You will only be excused if you have an immediate family funeral to attend. Apparently, Fudge had sense to build back the Auror force, but he wants all of them fresh."

"Why is that?" Ted asked with irritation. He hardly got to spend time with his daughter, and a total year without seeing her wasn't something he was looking forward to.

"Partly because it will cost less to hire fresh Aurors than take back old ones, and partly because the best of the old ones wouldn't come back. He tried to hire Moody as an instructor, but he said he was busy for the next year."

"You mean Mad-Eye Moody?" Ted asked and Amelia nodded. "Good, I didn't fancy my girl to be trained by him. Merlin knows he can push things hard." He muttered.

"I would've been happy." Andromeda told her husband, who looked at her questioningly. "If she is going to be an Auror, she should be prepared for the worst. And Mad-Eye was one of the few people who knew when to use force instead of dancing around."

"Who is this Moody? And why is he called Mad-Eye?" Tonks asked with interest.

"That's a really long story." Amelia sighed.

...

Tonks was determined to enjoy her last two weeks at home as much as possible. Every morning, she visited one friend or another, came back home for lunch with family (including Sirius and Jennifer) and then took Harry out for movies (Harry made sure she stayed clear of romantic ones), or football at Edward's place (Harry was a surprisingly good midfielder), or at a muggle restaurant or simply to their common friends' place. Their favourite was the Burrow, where they could play three on three quidditch and Mrs. Weasley would feed them until they couldn't move. Susan's summer house was another spot both liked to go. Neville and Hannah would often join and even Hermione came over once. Tonks managed to smuggle in a television with CD player (shrunk in her pocket) and they stayed awake at night after watching horror movies. They were all amused when they found Hannah practically curled up on Neville's lap after a particularly gruesome movie. Tonks, who found this very cute, teased them mercilessly for the next few days, with occasional help from Susan and Harry. Hermione smiled at their antics, but didn't participate.

One day, however, things deviated from their fun routine. Harry was peacefully sleeping at his room at the Tonks' residence, when he had a dream about Wormtail, Voldemort and a muggle. He wasn't totally sure, but he thought there was a giant snake involved in the scene. Unlike normal dreams, this one had no inconsistency or randomness. It was almost like witnessing the event himself. To make it stranger, his trademark lightning bolt shaped scar hurt for the first time since he defeated Quirrel. He remembered Dumbledore telling him that his scar might hurt if Voldemort was close or feeling strong emotions, so he tried to pick up any unusual sounds. Fortunately, everything appeared normal, so he waited till morning to tell Andromeda and Sirius about it. Both of them looked worried and thoughtful.

"As much as I hate to admit it, Dumbledore is the one who could shed some light on this." Andromeda said gravely. Sirius nodded and went to Floo the Headmaster.

For a change, Dumbledore was being honest. He clearly told them what he understood and suspected.

"It might very well be a real vision. When Pettigrew escaped, I was afraid that he would go to find Lord Voldemort, who was, according to my sources, at Albania. I think my fears have become true. However, since dreams cannot be viewed as a memory, nothing can be done except for hoping that Lord Voldemort will not return in the near future." He said gravely, sipping the tea served by Andromeda. She agreed to his words. There really wasn't anything that could be done.

"Sir, what about my scar? Why did it hurt? I mean it isn't the pain that bothers me, but you said that the scar was a connection between me and Voldemort." Harry asked the old man.

"Indeed, my boy. The night Voldemort tried to kill you, he unknowingly created a bond with you. The nature of this bond is not totally clear to me, seeing that you are the first person with this kind of scar, but I daresay it is more mental than physical and if this becomes a regular happening, I can appoint Professor Snape to teach you Occlumency, which might help you to block out the visions and the pain."

"Wait, Snape is going to teach me this occlu- thingy?" Harry exclaimed.

"Professor Snape, Harry. And yes, he is the best Occlumens that I happen to know apart from myself; forgive my lack of modesty. Despite the less than friendly relation between you two, I think he will be the best person to-"

"I will teach him." Andromeda interrupted and Dumbledore looked taken aback.

"Pardon me, but are you an Occlumens too?" Andromeda rolled her eyes.

"Of course I am. All Black family members are taught Occlumency and Legilimency when they are fourteen or fifteen. Sirius ran away before his turn, so I don't know if he knows it."

Sirius shook his head. Dumbledore looked quite relieved.

"That is fantastic. You can start on your lessons whenever you feel it necessary. It might take some time to master."

"You aren't going to insist on making Snape teach him?" Andromeda asked with mild surprise and Dumbledore looked pained.

"I know you don't regard me as the most thoughtful or caring person, but believe me, I only have Harry's best interests at heart. I do not wish to cause him more pain than I already did, and I really feel sorry for what you had to endure at your relatives' home. Though I still think you would be better protected if the wards were recharged in time, but you seem happy here and that matters a lot to me, Harry. I wish you would forgive this old man for his mistakes. I clearly underestimated Petunia's jealousy."

"What jealousy?" Harry asked with a frown. She was resentful, yes. But jealous?

"Yes. She was jealous of Lily. In her eyes, Lily had something she did not. Not to mention Lily was liked by almost everyone and she was not. I think she could let her jealousy go if Lily hated her back. The fact that Lily always tried to talk to her and be nice to her despite all the hurtful things she said her, it showed that Lily was a better person than her and she could never forgive herself for being so bitter and cruel towards the possibly only person who loved her all the way through. You remind her of Lily and you serve to her as a reminder of the sister she lost for her own pettiness."

Silence followed Dumbledore's explanation as everyone pondered over what they heard. After a while, Harry spoke.

"She still loved my mother, didn't she?" he asked in a whisper and Dumbledore smiled sadly.

"I believe she did. Despite her attitude towards her, she still felt strongly for her sister and seeing you around reminded her of what she threw away."

Andromeda, unnoticed by everyone, blinked rapidly and looked away. Hearing of sisters reminded her of Cissy and Bella. She wrote to them, once after she got married. Narcissa replied that she has ashamed mother and father, and Bella... she said almost the same thing, but in the end, she added a line that broke Andromeda's heart.

_I hope we never meet, Andi, because if I do, I'll probably kill you. Because you did something I'll never have the courage to do. Don't write to me again._

Andromeda kept her sister's wish, and never wrote to either of them again.

...

The atmosphere was incredibly sad and happy at the same time. Tonks was finally going to the place she dreamt of going since she was thirteen. But it also meant that she would be cut off from her family until she finished her course. Amelia informed that trainee Aurors were allowed to write to home once a month only. It was supposed to be practise for later because Aurors often went to places for missions where owls couldn't reach, or was dangerous to communicate with anyone.

Andromeda was having a hard time reining back the tears that threatened to escape her. She was incredibly proud of her daughter, who was finally on her way to becoming an Auror. There was a lot left to actually becoming an Auror, and Andromeda knew that her daughter would have to endure taunts and prejudices for her talent, but she knew Nymphadora was strong enough to handle it all. She missed the little pink haired girl who just learned to talk and wouldn't stop talking since. She missed the girl who would fall down often, and get up again with a smile that could light up a room. She wanted to protect her baby girl form the evil of the world, but she knew it was time for her to live her own life and learn to live on her own. She knew it was the time when she wasn't her little Nymphadora anymore. She was a grown up woman and soon she would bring some guy home, claiming to be in love, and then, apart from the occasional owl and floo visits, she would slowly fade away from her daughter's life. Maybe one day her daughter would become a mother too, and she would turn to Andromeda for help, which she would gladly give. Maybe one day everyone would recognise her as the mother of Senior Auror Nymphadora Tonks, or whatever her surname would be at that point, who would be the best Auror there was. And she would proudly tell everyone how she always knew that her daughter was the best.

After giving a last, long hug to her father, Tonks pulled Harry to the landing. Everyone else knew that these two had a special bond and decided to give them some privacy, saying their last goodbyes and heading back inside.

To her immense surprise, it was Harry who pulled her to a really tight hug, and when he let go, he placed a kiss on her cheek and murmured, "Take care, Dora."

It broke her heart to see the sadness in his eyes. She knew she would miss him the most. He always knew how to handle her, what to say to make her feel better. She knew no one would wrap their arms around her and rub her back when she would cry like he did. No one could make her smile as easily as him when she was down. She looked straight to the emerald eyes that fascinated her from their childhood.

Slowly, she leaned in and pressed her lips to his. For a moment that seems like forever, she kissed him. Then she pulled back.

"Don't forget me, sweetheart." She whispered in his ears.

Then, with a quick, last hug, she turned and disappeared.

_A/N: Reviews please?_


	24. Difficulties

**24. Difficulties**

"_Imperio."_

The man now had a slightly glazed look in his face. He nodded as instructions were being whispered to him. Then he disapparated with a loud bang.

Bartemius Crouch Jr. sighed. He was confident that the man would finish the job perfectly, but that didn't ease the nervousness that poisoned his confidence. He really wasn't looking forward to feeling the Dark Lord's wrath when his servants failed him. His last failure almost cost him his sanity. He knew exactly how much exposure to the Cruciatus would make someone insane. He had witnessed Bellatrix do it on Alice Longbottom as Rodolphus, Rabastan and he did the same to Frank Longbottom. When he returned to the Dark Lord after failing to utilize the ambush on Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody, he knew how it felt to be on the other end of the curse. He tried to explain that if Wormtail didn't trip the ward before it was neutralized, they would have easily brought in the old Auror. As it was, they considered themselves lucky to have escaped out of the retched place alive.

It wasn't totally the rat's fault, though. Wormtail was asked to scout the perimeter of the wards as his rat form. Who knew that the old Auror would be that much paranoid? After Pettigrew escaped from the Aurors, out of vigilance, Moody set up an extra ward around his house to detect animaguses, and Pettigrew just fell to the trap. Immediately, the innocent looking dustbins started throwing hexes and within a few seconds, Moody himself was out in his pyjamas, cursing at top speed. Both Death Eaters had cuts and gashes all around their bodies and soon Crouch Jr. grabbed the unconscious Wormtail and apparated away. He would have left the worthless and pathetic excuse for a wizard there, but he knew too much to be handed over to the Ministry.

When they reported their failure to the Dark Lord, he wasn't pleased at all. It took three weeks for Wormtail to be able to walk properly again, and every now and then he would wince in residual pain for another month. Finally, Barty had another idea which could work and he nervously shared it with his master. The Dark Lord admitted that the plan could work, and then he called Nagini and promised Barty that if he failed this task, he wouldn't deny Nagini a proper dinner.

As he finished the first part of the plan properly, he hoped that the rest worked out smoothly. He repressed a shudder, thinking about what would happen if it didn't.

...

She felt like she could eat a hippogriff and a horse and still wouldn't be full. With great difficulty, Nymphadora Tonks managed to drop to her camping bed that was nowhere near comfortable. It was all supposed to make you hard, but she could give less crap on hardness right now. All she wanted was a long shower at home and then drop to her comfortable bed. But that was just wishful thinking. Shower wouldn't be available before another hour, and she wasn't interested in standing in a line in front of the bathroom to wait her turn. She would go when it wasn't crowded. If she could stay awake up to that time, that is.

She knew what she was signing to when she joined the Auror Academy. Unfortunately, not every of her fellow trainees had the advantage of their mother being friends with the Head of DMLE, so they weren't aware of the fact that the training would last one year instead of two and half, but without any single freaking holidays. They all protested loudly when this was announced, but the Minister, who was present to give a speech to the future Ministry army, decided to show attitude and asked any person having a problem with the routine to leave. Maybe he considered himself intimidating, or thought that the job was too attractive. He was wrong in both counts.

A dark skinned trainee named Homer Rickman stood up and said, "You are gonna fire us anyway when our salary gets high. I have better plans than to lick your smelly arse." With those words, he left the room, and in turn, the Academy, and if Fudge looked defiant before, his looks changed to shock, to fear, and then to terror when around fifty men and women followed Homer and left. As a result, the Auror Academy was left with thirty students, some of which looked unsure if they did the right thing by staying.

The Head Trainer, Marcus Throne, wanted to bang his head on the wall. No one left the Auror Academy once they entered without the express permission of the Head of DMLE or the Minister himself (or else most of the new students would leave after a week). It wasn't imprisonment. The training was very demanding, and a lot of students felt that it wasn't worth a career. These same students, however, felt that the training was very much necessary and had an impact on their lives when they actually became an Auror. So even the students often complained that the place was like a prison, they were never given total freedom while they were on training. They were watched closely in their first year as a real Auror, too. With the amount of training and knowledge they were provided, a fresh graduate could turn dark if not kept on watch. Once they were mature enough to resist the temptation of wrong over right, they were left on their own.

And now Fudge screwed their plans. They had some famous senior Aurors coming, who would inspire these young people and tell them that whatever they felt now, the training was worth it. But Fudge had to speak with his arse and now the Academy was starting with the least number of students since it opened two hundred years ago. Every year, around 100-150 men and women, ranging from 18 to 23 years of age entered the Academy. This year, the number was already down to eighty, and now they were left with thirty potential Aurors.

These thirty were then introduced to the Senior Aurors whose speeches convinced them that they were doing the correct thing by staying. After the students were shown their dorms and instructed to get ready by 5 am the next morning, Amelia and the Senior Aurors turned to Fudge.

"Are you proud of yourself, Minister?" Amelia asked with a glare that he barely managed not to flinch at.

"They had a right to choose..." he tried to say feebly.

"Don't talk about what you don't know, Fudge. They signed a contract where it was clearly stated that they are agreeing to abide by the rules of the training, including the routine. You gave them the opportunity to escape, which they didn't hesitate to take." Marcus Throne thundered and the Minister cowered.

"Get them back-" he tried to suggest, but Amelia cut him off.

"By kidnapping them? You gave them express permission to leave and they would have every right to sue the Academy if anyone tries to force them back. Take an advice Fudge, and don't say more than you need to. Your mouth is starting to cause more damage than your Undersecretary's one." She said with disgust.

Fudge wanted to be indignant at being dressed down by people he clearly outranked, but he decided to take Amelia's advice and kept quiet.

Of course, Tonks knew all these because she sneaked back to the conference room and was pleased to see that they didn't put up any privacy charms while lashing at Fudge. She shared the experience with a few friendly people, who were slightly awed by her courage to sneak away from the dorms in the first hour of their first day.

"I'll bet you were a Gryffindor." A freckly guy named Frank Hall said. Tonks smirked.

"No, but I spent too much time with one."

Now, after three months, she was having doubts about joining the Aurors. Sure, she was warned, but between all the vigorous trainings that included physical workout, firing at the range, dodging cutting hexes from five merciless trainers, lectures about 'coping to the surroundings' and all other jazz, she was terribly missing the comfort of her home or Hogwarts. She missed her friends, writing to her parents, and most importantly, she missed Harry. Oh, how she missed him!

Though she vehemently tried to tell herself that she kissed him to make sure he remembered her, she knew that she was actually trying to leave a mark. His first kiss, if he was honest with her, was stolen by her. She knew that girls would be after him like moths to flame very soon, what with being the freaking Boy-Who-Lived and all. And it certainly didn't hurt that he was quite cute and could be very charming when he wanted to be, and he knew how to handle a crying girl. That was a huge bonus point in her opinion. She strongly believed that next time she saw him she wouldn't be his so called favourite girl anymore. The thought did nothing to improve her mood.

_Tomorrow's Halloween. I can send him a letter at last._

Before her yes gave away to exhaustion, she tried to cheer herself up by that.

...

Halloween wasn't a pleasant day for Harry Potter, as he found out the hard way. Being forced to compete in a tournament designed for NEWT level students, which was incidentally famous for its high death toll, was not his idea of pleasant. Not to mention the argument with almost the entire Hufflepuff House.

Of course, Susan defended him, and was meekly supported by Hannah, but that only resulted in them being outcasts from their own house. Cedric Diggory, the Hogwarts champion, was trying to tell his housemates to leave the duo alone, but it was clear that he didn't believe that Harry didn't put his name intentionally.

Harry, however, couldn't stand this, and went to confront the Puffs. Susan and Hannah tried to talk him out of it, but he found that he didn't care about detentions or any other consequences.

"What the hell do you think you are doing here, Potter?" Ernie Macmillan sneered at him when he entered the Badgers' common room. Everyone noticed him and shouted various degrees of unpleasant things at him. Cedric however, calmed everyone down, and asked him in a slightly cold voice, "What do you want?"

Harry thrust Susan and Hannah, who were standing behind him, forwards before answering.

"I can tell you that I didn't put my name in the Goblet a hundred times, and you still wouldn't believe me. My second year taught me how to tolerate all these, so I'm not here to convince you of my innocence."

"So you admit you did enter your name?" a boy asked aggressively.

"Shut up, Smith. He never said that!" Susan said, glaring at the boy. The boy was about to retort but Harry intervened.

"You can believe whatever you like, I really don't care. What I came here for is these two." He pointed at the two girls by his side.

"What about them?" a burly looking sixth year asked with distaste.

"You people are Hufflepuffs. You are known for your hard working and your loyalty. So these two girls had a different opinion than you. Big deal! It isn't like she is demeaning the Hogwarts champion. It's not like they won't be ecstatic if Cedric would win this bloody tournament. Would they support me in the tournament? I sure hope so. But that doesn't mean they wouldn't want someone from Hufflepuff to win the Tournament, which would most definitely be something to brag about. They aren't being disloyal to Hufflepuff. They just know me better than to assume that I would do something like this for glory. And if the Weasley Twins couldn't fool the Age Line, I hardly think a fourth year could.

I don't ask you to believe me or help me in any ways. All I wanted was to sit back and enjoy the tournament, and cheer for the Hogwarts champion. That is apparently not to happen. All I ask is that don't drive these two wonderful girls away on my account. I'm just an outsider to you. They are one of you. Please don't be harsh on them. I promise they won't say anything about me being innocent anymore." He finished with a sad look.

"But Harry-" Susan protested angrily, but she found her mouth being covered by Harry.

"You live here, Sue. They don't know me like you do." He said very quietly. "You have no idea how much it means that you would go against your own house to support me, but please Susan, don't make it worse for me than it is. Promise me?"

He released her mouth and she looked on the verge of tears.

"For me, Sue?" he begged and after a long moment she nodded. He turned to the other girl.

"You too, Hannah. Nev would never forgive me if you suffer for me."

"I promise." She said quietly.

He hugged both the girls, Susan clinging a bit longer and then gently nudged them towards the silent crowd. Cedric spoke up.

"No one from this house will confront Susan or Hannah about you from now on. I give you my word, Harry." His eyes swept over his housemates as if trying to find someone who would contradict him. Finally it stopped at the sad face of Harry Potter.

"Thanks Cedric. That's all I asked for. Best of luck." With that, he turned around and left the Hufflepuff common room. Cedric spoke to his housemates.

"We all are entitled to have different opinions, but I felt ashamed when a Gryffindor showed us that our actions were unworthy of the Hufflepuff House. I hope you all will keep that in mind next time you disagree with someone from your house and go as far as to make them outcasts. I would hate it if the other schools went home with the idea that Hogwarts has more internal division than the blasted house systems. Thank you for supporting me, everyone." He finished with a smile.

...

_Dear Padfoot,_

_I don't know if Andromeda's with you, so I'm sending this separately to both of you._

_I have bad news. You know the Triwizard Tournament that's taking place here? Well, my name came out of the Goblet of Fire as the fourth champion. Most of the school believes that I put my name intentionally. Dumbledore told e that I had no other choice than to compete. He said he would try his best to find out who was behind this, but I doubt he can find the person. I mean, the man who did this isn't likely to boast around, is he?_

_Professor Moody thinks someone might be out there who wishes to harm me and that I should be constantly vigilant. I asked Mr. Bagman if there was a way to forfeit the tasks, he told me that he didn't know and that I should ask Mr. Edgecombe. He left early, so if you can find a rulebook of the Tournament or ask someone, it would be great._

_I wish Dora was here. I became unpopular in the Hufflepuff house, as the Hogwarts champion Cedric Diggory is from Hufflepuff. I don't blame them, really, but I don't like the hateful glares either. Can you visit in the next Hogsmeade weekend please?_

_Say hi to Jennifer. I miss her._

_Yours,_

_Harry_

He wrote a similar letter for Andromeda and sent them with Hedwig. She seemed to understand that Harry wasn't in a good mood, because before taking flight, she nibbled his ear extra affectionately. He smiled at his owl and held her close before he released her and she spread her wings.

He still had to reply to Dora's letter, but he knew she wouldn't be able to write back beforeanother month. Besides, it would be unfair to Hedwig if he sent his letter to Dora with another owl after she had been so nice to him.

He wanted to tell Dora how much he missed her and how he wished she was here with him. He often thought about the kiss she gave just before leaving and found himself secretly wishing for more. Right now, however, he needed her to give him a tight hug and tell him that everything will be okay. Sadly, that was just another wish that wouldn't come true.

A lone drop of salty water escaped from the corner of his eyes as he thought about the bloody tournament, the glares of the students, the troubles Susan and Hannah endure for him, and most importantly, the girl with pink hair and a heart shaped face with a button nose, who could make him smile in the darkest of times.

_It is going to be a very long year._ He thought with a sigh.

_A/N: Lots of angst, I know. Did you hate it too much? Please let me know._


	25. A Dragon and A Ball

_A/N: This is the last you'll hear from me this month. I'll write and post the next chapter and reply to the reviews in December. Enjoy._

**25. A Dragon And A Ball**

His smile left his face when he saw Ron Weasley coming towards him. He could see Ginny watching her brother with an angry look.

"Hey Harry, well done mate. Listen, I um... I'm sorry for what I said earlier, I wasn't thinking straight and uh... I believe that you didn't enter the tournament by yourself." He said nervously. Harry considered him carefully.

"What changed your opinion?" he asked coolly.

"Er... Gin uh... convinced me that you are not the type to look for glory and... er... I am convinced because you would never do that." He finished quickly.

"Really? I'll have to thank her later. When did she convince you of this?"

Ron's ears went pink.

"Um... quite a few days back. I was... er... busy, so I couldn't say all this earlier." He avoided Harry's eyes.

"That's great Ron, but I decided that I don't give a shit anymore about who thinks what of me. So thank you, but no thanks." He didn't wait to listen to his spluttering. He had to go find Luna.

Fortunately, she was quite near. He smiled brightly when he spotted her and gave her a tight hug.

"Thank you Luna, you are the best." He said happily to the strange blonde, who smiled widely.

"Oh it's nothing Harry, you did it all yourself. Although I did try to scare away the nargles so they wouldn't distract you. Nice performance, by the way."

"Thanks. Listen, is there anything you would like as a gift?" he asked directly, knowing Luna's way.

"Can you get me a muggle walkman? I always wanted one, but Daddy said there are too many wrackspurts in muggle shops. I'm quite susceptible to them, you know."

"Sure Luna, I'll get you one in Christmas."

"Oh thank you Harry." She smiled sweetly before waving and turning away.

Harry grinned as she skipped away from sight, and his smile grew wider as he saw a squealing Susan coming towards him. He thought of the conversation with Luna which helped him in the task.

He was sitting dejectedly in the library, waiting for Hermione to appear with ten or fifteen more books when the Ravenclaw appeared out of nowhere to plop in the seat beside him.

"Hello Harry, you look terrible. Flimpwooks got you?" she asked sympathetically.

"Hi Luna. I'm trying to figure out how to move fast enough to evade flames from a dragon. Any suggestions?" he said glumly.

"You can fly." She suggested.

"No, I can't." He said worriedly. Was Luna starting to consider him as one of those nargles too?

"We all have seen you fly, Harry." She said patiently. Harry was bewildered for a moment and then realized what she was talking about.

"Oh, quidditch. Yeah, but we aren't allowed to enter with broomsticks." He replied sadly. She thought for a moment and then smiled.

"Then get it after you enter." She said with a bright smile and went away. It took a few moments to understand her meaning, but when he did, he promised to buy Luna the best gift he could think of.

He was still nervous before entering the enclosed area. His plan was to fly near the dragon, try to bait it away from the eggs, and if it didn't budge, he would throw a Conjunctivus curse (which Andromeda suggested him) at its eye.

Everything was going on according to the plan, and Harry threw the curse when the Horntail didn't rise to his bait. But then the great animal went crazy. Roaring flames and thrashing tails were inches from taking his life. He had to doge them very quickly and ignored the screams from the stands. The spiked tail brushed his boots after a few horrifying minutes of dodging and escaping death when he snapped.

All his frustrations and anger rose to surface. Slytherins trying to trip him or jinx him, his friends being shunned, Snape bullying him and taking points from him every chance he got, the pressure of the Tournament and the months without Dora pushed him over the edge. With blood pounding in his ears, he started attacking the dragon back.

Every curse he knew was thrown at the beast's eye as he outflew one of the most dangerous species in the world. He had a clear shot at the egg, but he continued his attack. After seven minutes of endless curses that almost blinded the beast, it finally had enough and tried to escape from the onslaught when Harry came back to his senses.

He was exhausted by using too much magic, and he gently came down to the now empty nest and picked up the shining egg. He didn't notice the tremendous applause from the stands, nor did he care that he got a near perfect score (a reluctant five from Karkaroff and nine from Maxime were the only exceptions from full marks). He took a pepper-up potion from Madam Pomfrey and promised her to use minimal magic for the next couple of days. Cedric, who was sporting a gash on his face, congratulated him and thanked him again for his tip about the dragons. Watching Harry taking on the dragon and besting it made the Hufflepuff respect Harry more than before.

As he walked out of the tent, looking for Luna, the adrenaline left his system and he realized that once he attacked the dragon, he was always inches away from being engulfed by a huge flame or have all his bones crushed by an angry whip of the tail. He sure did have a lot of dumb luck. He could almost hear a pink haired girl yelling at him, "Do you always have to be such a Gryffindor?"

...

"Mind if I join?"

Susan looked up from her homework and smiled when she saw it was Harry. Nodding, she cleared some parchments from the chair next to her. He sat down and offered her a chocolate frog from his pockets. Glancing around to make sure the librarian wasn't in sight, she threw the frog shaped chunk of chocolate to her mouth.

"How are things in Hufflepuff?" he asked her. She laughed.

"Oh they are good. Actually, they are better than ever. You saw that Cedric asked everyone to lay off Hannah and me. After you told him about the dragons, he told everyone to stop bothering you too. But after you wiped the floor with the Horntail, everyone who ever accused you of being a liar is scared out of their pants. Ernie Macmillan makes a point of helping Hannah and me whenever he can, and Zacharias Smith is avoiding us like plague. Lots of people apologized to us and tried to imply that they would want to make peace with you. Only that they are afraid you would hold it against them and destroy their sorry arses." She said with a smirk. Harry smiled amusedly.

"Frankly, I couldn't care less about them. But I'm happy that you aren't having any troubles for me." Susan shook her head.

"You are practically my brother, Harry. I would support you no matter what."

Harry smiled fondly at the redhead before changing the topic.

"So, got a date for the Ball?" he asked.

"Nah." She said somewhat sadly. "Whom are you taking?"

"I don't know. I don't want to take you, Hannah or Hermione coz that would be weird, but I want to enjoy the evening with whomever I take without feeling awkward."

"You want to take Tonks." She said bluntly and Harry choked on the chocolate frog he was chewing.

"Wh.. what do you mean?" he asked with a red face and Susan shook her head in amusement.

"You know, I'm not a daft. It's easy to see that you have a massive crush on her and anyone with eyes would notice that. Don't deny it, Harry. Are you seriously going to tell me that you don't fancy her?"

He stared at her for a long time with his mouth open, and then he replied in a quiet voice.

"I guess you are right. But nothing would happen out of it because she's way older than me and even though we are very good friends, I doubt she would want to... date a fourteen year old who always manages to drag her into some trouble or other."

Susan squeezed his hand. "Don't say like that. You are very important in her life. Maybe she wouldn't fall head over heels for you right away, but give it some time, and who knows, maybe it will work out." She finished with a smile. Then, suddenly she burst into a fit of giggles.

"What?" a bewildered Harry asked, looking around.

"I was just thinking that you two would make really cute babies."

After a minute, Madam Pince threw out a hysterically laughing Susan and a beet red Harry.

...

"Hello ladies." He gave a charming smile to the pair of girls chatting quietly. Both of them looked up with questioning looks.

"How can we help you, champion?" the brunette asked teasingly. He felt nervous, but he didn't let it show.

"How about you tell me whom are you going to the Ball with?"

"I'm taking that one, Potter." Blaise Zabini called, pointing at Daphne Greengrass, who blushed.

"Noted." Harry smirked at the boy. Out of the whole Slytherin house, these three were the only ones who didn't think of him as a lying prat.

"Tracey is free, though." Daphne added, ignoring the glare from her best friend.

Harry cleared his voice and spoke in a charming voice that he practised many times with Sirius over the two way mirror.

"Tracey, would you let me have the honour of escorting you to the Yule Ball?"

Both girls giggled and a slightly blushing Tracey replied, "Okay, I'll go. But don't ask for a second date if you like to keep your genitals where it is."

"So my genitals often invade your thoughts? I'm so honoured!" he smirked as Daphne and Blaise burst out into laughter and Tracey's face became crimson.

"Watch it, Potter-" she started, but Harry cut her off.

"Relax, Tracey. I wouldn't ask for another date." He assured her and she smiled.

"Why though? Am I that er... _undateable_?" he asked with a bit of worry, his thoughts straying to a certain metamorphmagus. Tracey shook her head quickly.

"No harry, it's nothing like that. I know a bunch of girls who would kill to date you only if they weren't scared out of their pants of you."

"Why would they be scared of me?" Harry asked with surprise. Tracey and Daphne shred a look that clearly said, 'clueless as a flobberworm'

Daphne answered his question. "With the rumours of what you did in your previous years, and not to mention the unbelievable show you gave with the dragon, even I'm a bit intimidated by you."

Harry pondered over this for a moment. He wanted to say that it was pure dumb lick, but felt that the Slytherins wouldn't really agree with that.

"Okay. So about the second date-"

"I have a boyfriend and I don't want to feel like I'm cheating on him." Tracey told him easily.

"Oh. So why don't you go with him?" he asked curiously.

"He went home for Christmas, but he said he wouldn't mind if I went to the Ball with someone else."

Harry nodded. At least he didn't have to worry about an overprotective boyfriend later on.

"So I'll meet you in the Great Hall, yeah?"

"Sure Harry." She said with a smile.

After the class was over, he bid the Slytherins goodbye and consulted his Map. Satisfied, he went to the Gryffindor common room, his mind on a conversation with Susan last year.

"Hey Dean." He greeted, sitting down beside the boy.

"Hey Harry. What's up?"

"You have a date?" Harry asked.

"Nope." He said gloomily. "You?"

"Yeah, I have one."

"Lucky you."

"Have you asked anyone?" Harry inquired.

"Er... no." Dean replied sheepishly.

"I know someone who might be interested."

"Really? Who?" Dean looked excited.

"Do you know Susan Bones from Hufflepuff?" he asked with a sly grin.

"You can't be serious!"

Dean's shout was loud enough to bring some girls down from their dorm.

...

"How about this one?" Andromeda asked Sirius, who was considering the piece of garment critically.

"That will look good on him." Jennifer commented, tilting the robe as if to see it under a different light.

"It will bring out the colour of his eyes and hair." Andromeda said, nodding.

The robe was a vibrant green with black design, looking quite elegant.

"I still think purple would suit him." Sirius complained but the two women shut him up just by looking at him. He muttered things like 'unfair' and 'outnumbered' under his breath.

"Hello, I'm right here." Harry said irritably at the adults. For the last two hours, he was trying out robes of different colours and designs, but none of them were, apparently, perfect for him. Though he was thankful that Dora was not here.

"Of course Harry. What do you think?" Jennifer asked him.

"I'm not trying out anymore robes." He declared. Sirius gave a barking laugh.

"Ah... If you say so." Andromeda said, sounding regretful.

After the clerk packed the robe, Harry went forward to pay.

"Harry-" Andromeda started sternly, but Harry wasn't about to listen.

"I had to be the dressing doll all day long, so you have no say in this." He said stubbornly as Andromeda tried to hide her laughter at his childishness. Jennifer giggled and said, "Let him have his moment, Andy. Come on, let's shop for Sirius."

Everyone laughed as Sirius gulped audibly.

"I really don't need any clothes, dear." He was saying nervously and Harry snickered at his godfather.

"Go on Sirius, these robes are looking kinda old." He supplied, ignoring Padfoot's narrowed eyes.

"Who is your date for the Ball, Harry?" Jennifer asked after a while.

"Tracey. Tracey Davis. From Slytherin."

"A Slytherin?" Andromeda was impressed. It wasn't easy for a Gryffindor to befriend a Slytherin from what Dora told her. Maybe Harry has more of Lily's charm than she saw.

"Is she hot?" Sirius asked with a wink. Jennifer swatted his arm.

"I guess she is kinda pretty. She's got a boyfriend, so don't go there Padfoot." He warned the disappointed man.

"Doesn't matter, Harry. Make sure you have a good evening with her and with your friends." Andromeda said with a smile as a bunch of girls passed them, giggling at Sirius, who promptly gave them charming smiles and winks.

"Ahem."

"Oh right. Erm... sorry dear." Sirius avoided the eyes of an amused Jennifer.

...

As he promised to Andromeda, Harry did enjoy the Ball. Tracey looked stunning in a deep blue strapless dress.

"Wow Tracey, you look fabulous." Harry complimented her and the brunette blushed.

"Thanks Harry, you look very nice too."

They smiled at each other and then Harry offered her his arm, and together they headed for the Great Hall.

It was a surprise to see Hermione with Victor Krum, but Harry was happy for his friend, who he previously thought didn't care about uneducational things like boys and Balls, and certainly not hair potions or make up. He smiled at Krum and the Bulgarian smiled and nodded back at him. The food was even better than usual. Dumbledore was merrily chatting with Daniel Edgecombe, the Head of the Department of International Magical Co-operation, who looked a bit nervous sitting between Madam Maxime and Professor Dumbledore. Ludo Bagman was trying to talk with Professor McGonagall, but she didn't seem eager to discuss Wimbourne Wasps recent match statistics.

Soon, it was time for the dance. Harry held out a hand for Tracey as he stood up. She took it with a smile. He went through the tips Sirius gave him over the mirror and during their robe shopping. He held her left hand with his right, and placed his right hand in her waist. She placed her arm around his shoulder and they gently swayed, taking small, lazy steps.

"Don't your hands wander, Potter." She warned playfully. Harry smirked.

"Now isn't that a tempting idea?" he said with a grin, but his hands did not move.

"I know you wouldn't, Harry." She said with a soft smile.

"Do you think you'll be in trouble?" Harry asked with concern after he saw Draco Malfoy throwing them dark glares.

"Don't worry about it." She replied quietly. "It's no one but my concern whom I go to the Ball with. And I never liked the House system either."

"Nor do I. But I don't want my friends to have trouble from their own house on my account." He said remorsefully. She took a while to reply.

"You know I feel a bit of regret for having a boyfriend right now." She said. When he looked at her questioningly, she explained. "That's the only thing keeping me from promising you another couple of dates. You are a very nice guy, Harry, and you will make your witch very happy one day." She smiled at the blushing face of the Boy Who Lived. Her boyfriend from Ravenclaw was a sixth year, and still he wasn't as thoughtful as the boy who gently held her in his arms.

As the song ended, they agreed to skip out the next one. Their plans of relaxing for a bit was ruined as Draco Malfoy approached them with Pansy Parkinson. Harry grimaced. So much for a nice evening.

"Shame on you, Davis. With all the boys from Hogwarts and two other schools, you had to choose Potter?" Pansy said with a sneer.

"Listen Parkinson," Harry replied before Tracey opened her mouth. He fully planned on channelling his inner Tonks with these two. "She had the taste to choose a Champion of the Tournament. You, on the other hand, are happy to choose the Champion of tasteless homosexuals. Before you snog Draco, let me warn you. His mouth has been to Crabbe and Goyle's willies. I was half expecting one of them to be his date."

A red faced Malfoy was about to snarl, but Harry beat him to it.

"As for you, Parkinson, I certainly heard you saying how you 'persuaded' Draco to take you with him. What did you do? Rubbed lubricant on his rear as he was shagged by Crabbe? Or did he make you listen to how his father is going to hear about your poor 'persuading' skills, if you know what I mean." He finished with a smirk. Tracey was clutching her stomach with laughter.

"You are going to pay for this, Davis." Malfoy managed to shout out over her laughter. Harry went forward and looked Malfoy in the eye.

"Listen very carefully, Draco. I defeated a dragon a few weeks before and I'm still here to tell the story. If you or anyone else dares to touch her, I will hurt you. Very slowly and very badly."

Draco Malfoy couldn't claim that he was ever in a dangerous situation. His experience of fear was, therefore, limited to being shouted at by his mother. He was raised in a family where he was provided with everything he wanted and needed. His father never admonished him and taught him that their blood was superior. He was made aware of his father's power, which gave him the illusion that he had the right to rule the school. He thought himself as the leader of Slytherins. In truth, most Slytherins treated him with indifference, but a few obeyed him as he emphasised the importance of the name Malfoy. He seldom had anyone standing up to him except Potter. Davis and Greengrass always ignored him, but he liked to think they were afraid of him.

At the moment, when he looked to the cold emerald eyes of Harry Potter, he was afraid. He wasn't looking at a fourth year Gryffindor who bothered him. He was looking at the man who slayed a basilisk, defeated the Dark Lord as an infant and as he said, practically scared off a dragon. When he said that he would hurt him, he sensed he wasn't delivering a mere threat. He was telling the truth.

"Let's go Pansy." He muttered before grabbing the annoying girl's hand and walking away.

"That was... unexpected." Tracey commented and Harry smiled at her.

"Care for another dance?"

Harry enjoyed the rest of the Ball as he wanted to. He took turns to dance with Susan, Daphne, Hannah, Ginny, Hermione and even Cedric's girlfriend Cho Chang. For a few hours, he forgot about the tournament, and focused on being a teenager, and sooner than he would have liked, it was midnight and the Ball was officially over. He spotted Susan bidding goodbye to Dean, and Hannah kissing Neville's cheek. He turned to the witch in front of him.

"Thanks for coming with me, Tracey. I had a wonderful time."

"Me too. I'm glad you asked." She said with a dazzling smile and then hugged him, which Harry returned.

"Should I escort you to your common room?" he asked her.

"Do you know where our common room is?" she asked with a laugh, but stopped when he saw him grinning.

"How on earth-"

"It's a secret." He said with a wink.

"I'll take care of these two." Blaise said from behind Harry, Daphne in his arms.

"Thanks Blaise. See you guys." He bid them goodbye, and went to his dorm.

Many miles away, a metamorphmagus was smiling widely as she re-read the letter in her hands.

_Dear Nymphie,_

_Get over it because you know that you can't shout at me for the name. Merry Christmas. I know you can't write back before New Year, but I just wanted to write you._

_I told Susan how you ranted about me getting in the tournament, and she found it quite funny. Told you she would. After the First task, everyone stopped muttering and glaring at me, and they are all the friendliest people alive. But I've seen their true colours, and I found that I don't really care. My friends have been with me and that's what matters. I wish my favourite girl was there beside me, she always know how to cheer me up._

_How's your training going? I know it's exhausting, but remember that in the end it will be worth it. I miss you terribly. There is going to be a Yule Ball later today. (I'm writing this at Christmas morning and have no idea when it will reach you.) I wanted to take you (Yeah, I know I'm funny) but I had to take Tracey Davis from Slytherin. I secretly hope Malfoy says something about it in front of me. I've been practising some fine comebacks just for him. You were the inspiration, of course._

_Remember how Susan fancied Dean Thomas from Gryffindor in my year? Well, I set them up (hi five!) and they are going together. Neville's going with Hannah, of course (big surprise, huh?) but Hermione won't tell who's her date. I half expect a human-size copy of Hogwarts: A History, but don't tell her I said that._

_A lot of people ask me about you. I really hoped I could see you at Christmas, but your training comes first. Did I mention I miss you? Say hi to your friends, and the next time anyone bad mouths you for being the wonderful, talented witch you are, tell them that Harry Potter will be coming for them. Stay safe. I miss you. Once again, Merry Christmas._

_Harry._

She folded up the parchment and carefully put in her drawer. "Merry Christmas sweetheart." She whispered.

As she climbed the hard bed and closed her eyes, she had a huge smile on her face.


	26. The Graveyard

_A/N: __**akasanta**__ gets the points for posting the 600__th__ review. Thanks to all readers and reviewers!_

**26. The Graveyard**

He smiled nervously at Fleur Delacour, who gave him a dazzling smile in return. She had been very friendly with him since he pulled out Susan and Gabrielle (as he came to know her later) from the lake during the Second Task. The French girl confessed to him that at first she wanted to win the Tournament to prove that she was more than a pretty Veela. But now her only wish was to survive this rotten thing after believing that she came close to losing her dearest little sister (said sister did not appreciate being called little, though) to the merpeople.

Cedric and Victor both nodded at him and he gave thumbs up to both of them. Between the tasks, the four champions formed bond between themselves. They often met in the Great Hall, beside the Lake, or near the Quidditch pitch and just got to know each other. They even practised spells together occasionally. They all figured that the Tournament was just a business opportunity for the schools and the ministry, and they could care less if one of them lost their life. They took this chance to make friends outside their country and learn from them.

The first whistle was blown, and with determined steps, Harry strode inside. The maze was dark and silent. Taking a moment to calm down his nerves, he went to the right fork. The path wasn't blocked and he jogged a bit.

The whistle was blown for the second time, allowing Cedric to enter. Not pausing to think, he turned the corner, and stopped dead.

A dementor was gliding towards him, one scaly hand reaching out-

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" he shouted and the silver stag erupted from his wand to charge down the dementor. Strangely, instead of fleeing, the dementor stumbled.

_Wait. Dementors don't stumble... _

"Riddikulus!"

The dementor exploded. Releasing a breath, he went on.

As he turned several corners and blasted with the occasional creatures Professor Lupin taught them about, along with some tricky spells which he encountered using Arithmancy and instinct, he couldn't help the feeling that something bad was going to happen tonight.

There was a huge troll grunting at him in the next corner, and he had to smile, remembering the first troll he met. It was the day he first met Dora officially.

"Let's see what you got." He whispered to the troll, who was raising its club-

He banished the club from its hands and it roared in anger. Without missing a bit, he muttered, "Accio club."

The spell had its desired effect. It knocked down the troll as it flew towards Harry. He sidestepped the giant chunk of stone. Then he applied the same charm he used in his first year.

"Wingardium Leviosa."

This time, however, he let the club rise to about fifty feet before he released it. The result was quite nauseating. The troll's thick head split and yellow brains became visible along with the greyish blood.

The next obstacle was quite hilarious. He figured it was a test to check the knowledge of the champions about the muggle world. It looked like a scene from a video game, only it was more realistic. A horde of animated zombies were coming towards him, and he found that spells simply passed though them. There was a heavy shotgun in front of him and he knew what to do. He finished the whole firing thing within two minutes, and as he passed the dead zombies, they began to rise again, getting ready for the next champion.

He then met a strange creature with wings that looked like a cross between a snake and a raven. He quickly realized that the creature was very fast in it movements, but its movements were predictable. Only enduring a nasty tail whip, he managed to place a solid cutting curse, and the creature fell down immediately.

He managed to get through a Blast-Ended-Skrewt and a sphinx and finally the cup was in sight. His heart sank as he saw Victor Krum appearing from a lane that was much closer to the cup than he was.

When he started the tournament, he was determined to stay alive at the end, but now he had an overwhelming desire to win. And it didn't look like Viktor was going to back away. Not that he expected him to.

Then suddenly there was a huge spider right in front of the Bulgarian seeker.

"Viktor watch out!" he shouted and Krum skidded to a stop, but the spider already picked him up, and his wand dropped to the floor. Instantly, Harry started firing Reducto at the spider, but it seemed merely annoyed. Getting an inspiration, he threw a cutting curse at one of the creature's leg.

Instead of severing the legs, the curse managed to draw blood. But it released Krum and went after Harry. In desperation, he casted Incendio and a golden fire was caught in the bleeding leg. The creature made a noise that he could translate to painful scream, but didn't slow down by much. Remembering the dragon, he shot a Conjunctivus at its eye, and to his relief, it stopped.

His relief was, however, short lived as the creature raised its pincers and then charged at him with rage. Viktor managed to throw a few flame cutters, which made no major impact on the spider than a minor looking cut. Then Harry did something utterly reckless and stupid.

He charged towards the spider.

Unlike the dragon, however, this time he had a plan, and did not waste energy by throwing curses that didn't affect the spider. He hoped he wouldn't run out of that dumb luck he always had.

As the spider lowered its pincers to lift him up, he cast a powerful Reducto point blank and ducked from the blasted pieces, diving under the giant creature.

He had the desired effect. The spider was powerful, but not intelligent. The partially blown pincer distracted it from him, and it kept running on.

And then Cedric appeared in front of it.

The Hufflepuff didn't take the risk of fighting a fully grown Acromantula, and fled away to try another path.

Harry grunted in pain. When he dived to duck, he hurt his legs and shoulders. Viktor was panting beside him.

"Are you okay?" he asked the boy who saved his life.

"Yeah." Harry replied, breathing heavily.

"That vas a brave move."

"Thanks, I guess some would call it stupid."

The international seeker chuckled. He saw Harry eyeing the Cup.

"Go on, take it." He advised him, but the young boy shook his head.

"No, you take it. You were there first. Besides, if we race, you'd win."

Krum shook his head. "But we von't race. You saved me. You deserve it."

Harry looked a bit annoyed.

"Just take the damn cup so we can leave this place. It will be over finally." Harry nearly shouted, but his eyes betrayed a hint of longing for the victory.

Viktor Krum was no stranger to cups and medals. While this was more important than the Best Seeker Award or the Snitchmaster Trophy or your regular league cups, he knew that Harry Potter deserved the trophy, not him. However, he could also see the young man's dilemma. He wanted the cup, but at the same time, thought that he didn't deserve it.

"We vill do it together." He said in a determined tone, and he was pleased to see hope shining in the other champion's eyes.

"A tie?"

"A tie."

"On three?"

Krum nodded.

"One... Two..."

He saw the form of Fleur Delacour watching them from a few feet away.

"Three."

Both of them grabbed the handle of the cup at the same time, and there was a familiar tug at the navel as they disappeared.

"What happened?" Cedric asked Fleur as he finally caught up with the French Champion.

"I don't know. Zey touched ze cup together. I think eet was a portkey." She said worriedly, while Cedric threw red flames in the air. Moments later, Professor McGonagall descended from a broom.

"What's wrong with you two?" she asked irately. They weren't in any visible trouble and yet they shot out flames.

"Harry and Viktor disappeared after they touched the cup. We thought they were in trouble." Cedric explained.

The mazes began to disappear before Cedric was finished.

"Maybe because they are in the front?" McGonagall offered kindly. They were just worried about their fellow champions.

Indeed, they could see the two of them lifting up the cup and waving at the applauding audience.

"Well done! Both of you!" Dumbledore praised, relieved that the tournament was over without any harm to Harry or any other champions.

Daniel Edgecombe walked towards the champions, both of them still holding the cup.

"Indeed, very well done. I believe the prize money is to the split two ways now. This is quite extraordinary." Then he leaned towards Harry and asked quietly, "Are you a pureblood, Mr. Potter?"

Harry was not expecting the strange question.

"Er... no, I'm a..."

He saw that the man's eyes were a bit glazed and he had a very bad feeling about this, but the words escaped from his mouth before he could stop.

"... _halfblood_."

Dumbledore was talking to Ludo Bagman at the moment, so he didn't notice the two champions disappeared a second time. He turned around to see Edgecombe shouting, "Where did they go?"

...

"_Kill the spare!"_

As Harry's scar threatened to burst open in pain, he acted on pure instinct and kicked Krum's feet. The burly Bulgarian made an angry noise when he fell, face down on the earth, but he saw the poison green curse that sailed over his head.

Being a professional seeker gave you a knack of making decisions within a second. He knew he couldn't apparate back to Hogwarts or help Harry if he wanted to get out of here alive, but that didn't mean he couldn't apparate to anywhere else. Quickly grabbing his wand, which was just inches from his hand, he disapparated.

Harry didn't recognize the man who was tying him up. He had sandy blond hair and was quite young. But he did know the man who was attending to a huge cauldron, with a bundle in his arms.

"You are going to die today, Potter." The man in front of him said with a feral grin.

"So are you, shitface." He whispered back, clenching his teeth in pain. The grin was replaced with an ugly look. He hit Harry hard on the face.

"That's all you got?" Harry taunted, knowing that he was, indeed, going to die. At least he won't go like a loser. He would go like a man.

"Shut up you filthy halfblooded scum!" the man roared.

"Leave him alone, Crouch." A cold, high pitched voice called and the man backed off. Harry had a very good idea about what was there in the bundle, and yet he hoped against hope that he was wrong.

He saw in horror as Wormtail started a resurrecting ritual, taking the bones from a grave belonging to Tom Riddle Sr. and taking blood from Harry, and finally, the sandy haired man cutting off his right arm, pouring it all in the cauldron.

He watched helplessly as Lord Voldemort rose once again.

"Robe me, Wormtail." The pale, scaly body stood up from the large cauldron, clenching and unclenching his fists as he inspected them. As Wormtail put a robe on him, he stepped out of it, looking around the graveyard.

"Give me your arm, Wormtail." He ordered in the cold, high pitched voice. Trembling, the man offered his left arm, where the Dark Mark was branded.

Examining the mark with fascination, Voldemort pressed a thin, white finger on it, and it turned jet black and Wormtail whimpered. Voldemort then looked at Harry.

"Harry Potter." He said in a welcoming voice. Ignoring the pain in his forehead, he replied.

"Hi Tom. You look horrible."

The trace of the evil smile vanished from the snake-like face of Voldemort.

"I see the old fool Dumbledore hasn't been teaching you manners at school."

"I guess I don't need to have manners for the greater good, then. So are you going to kill me, or we are just going to have a chat? Perhaps Wormtail could bring us some tea?"

"Silence!" Voldemort screamed, waving his yew wand at Harry, who found that he couldn't speak.

"You are a fool, Harry Potter. You should be begging for your life. Or maybe you should be begging that you die quickly and painlessly. I may even grant your wish. Why, I certainly do feel merciful today."

As soon as he finished speaking, swishing noises interrupted the silence of the night. At first Harry felt hopeful, thinking that somehow some kind of help has arrived, but it soon turned into dread as the cloaked and masked figures one by one came to Voldemort, kneeled down and kissed the hem of his robes, muttering 'My Lord'.

Frankly, they looked like a pathetic herd of sheep.

What followed next was an incredibly boring dramatic monologue by Voldemort about how he knew ways to fool death, and how he, Harry, was the reason that he didn't return earlier. If not for the fact that he was about to die, he would have laughed. Or yawned. He was certainly feeling exhausted.

Then his exhaustion turned to fear as Voldemort put one of his followers under the Cruciatus Curse. The scream of the man echoed around the cold, dark graveyard and Harry desperately hoped that someone would hear and come to help. He wasn't afraid to die, but he was afraid that he wouldn't be able to bear it if he was put under the Cruciatus Curse.

Sooner than he would have liked, Voldemort turned his attention back to Harry.

"Harry Potter. The Boy Who Lived. Last time, I couldn't touch you, giving you an unfair advantage, but look Harry. I can touch you now." He pressed one bony finger to the scar on Harry's forehead.

If not for the feeling that his scar was seconds from start bleeding, he would have shouted 'GAY!' to the happy face of Voldemort. He struggled against his bindings as Voldemort laughed like a maniac.

"Untie him, Wormtail. And give his wand back to him."

Wormtail did as he was asked but Harry couldn't stand properly due to the pain in his leg, which he almost forgot about. He guessed it was sprained.

"You have been taught how to duel, I assume? Now bow to me, Harry."

Harry stood still, looking the evil bastard in the eye. He wasn't going to play by Voldemort's rules if he could help it. Unfortunately, he couldn't disobey, as his spine arched forwards with a lazy wave from Voldemort's wand. The Death Eaters laughed at him.

"Very good. Now we duel." Voldemort said in a sickly cheery voice.

Harry had learned basic duelling from Dora. Viktor and Fleur taught him some really good spells, too. But none of that could prepare him for a duel against the most feared Dark Wizard of the century.

Before Harry could think of a curse, Voldemort screamed "Crucio!"

It hurt like hell. There was no other way to describe it. All his nerve endings were being frayed as he screamed himself hoarse.

The pain stopped after few seconds, but his body still twitched and he could barely get up. The Death Eaters found this very funny and laughed loudly.

"Did that hurt, Harry?" Voldemort asked with a cold, evil smile. "Do you want me to stop? You have to but beg, and I will stop your suffering. Answer me. Do you want it to stop? Imperio!"

The feeling was wonderful. It felt like there wasn't anything in the world that could possibly worry him. All he had to do was to say 'stop it'. It was really very simple.

_But doesn't it mean you are giving up? _A little voice at the back of his head said quietly, but firmly.

What does it matter? I really should do it.

_It matters because your parents didn't die for you to give up like that. If you have to go, go with a fight._

Shut up, you irritating little voice! My parents aren't here anymore, so how do you know what they'd want?

_They'd be ashamed of you._

Voldemort was a bit surprised when the boy didn't respond immediately. But it didn't matter. After being exposed to the Cruciatus for the first time, it would be impossible for a fourteen year old boy to resist an Imperius Curse from Lord Voldemort, one of the two most powerful wizards of the century, which the Potter boy was, incidentally, receiving for the first time too. Even he couldn't resist the Imperius in his first time, and that was from a much lesser wizard.

Voldemort smiled in a satisfied manner when he saw the boy accept his fate and said in dreamy voice, "Please..."

It would be fun to torture him more and make him beg again.

"... go fuck yourself."

His smile was replaced by an ugly rage as he snarled and threw another Cruciatus at the brat. To his shock, he rolled away at the last second and the curse exploded a headstone.

Again, he threw a Cruciatus and this time it connected, though barely. He kept it for nearly a minute before he released him. Laughing cruelly, he went for the kill.

"Avada Kedavra!"

"Expelliarmus!"

The two spells, green and red, connected, and became a fine golden thread, with a pulsing golden sphere at the centre. He shouted at his followers to remain inactive when the two of them were lifted off their feet. He didn't know what it was, but knew what to do. Pushing with all his willpower, he forced the sphere at the Boy Who Lived, the bane of his existence for fourteen years.

The sphere almost connected with the boy's wand, but then it stopped. With undisguised shock he witnessed as the boy pushed the sphere back at him, and slowly it crossed the middle point, and now the sphere was on his half of the golden thread, which was emitting strong magical radiation.

He didn't know what the hell that sphere would do, but he felt an inexplicable fear. He knew if the sphere connected to his wand, something unpleasant would happen, but what shook him the most was the boy himself. It was clear that the sphere that was nearing him was guided by either willpower or raw magical power. He was very much scared when he realized that in one of these two, the boy apparently bested him. Without testing his luck like a foolish Gryffindor, he pulled away with all his might, and to his relief, the connection was broken. To his added satisfaction, the boy's leg seemed injured, because when they fell back to the ground, he fell down and clutched his ankle. Without wasting the precious chance, he put a full body bind at the boy.

Harry mentally slapped himself for losing his footing as they landed. He wasn't Dora, and even she wouldn't be clumsy in a life-death situation like this. As he grew rigid, he knew that his dumb luck was out. He wished he could have met Dora one last time, maybe hug or even kiss her goodbye.

"So that was all you had? All the glory of the Boy Who Lived ends tonight. I must admit that I will miss hunting you down and breaking you to pieces before killing you. I could have tortured your friends and family and kill them in front of you just to watch you suffer. Because I suffered for fourteen long years and how long do you suffer? Not even an hour. The injustice!

"But Lord Voldemort is feeling merciful today. Oh, I will break down each and every one of your friends and dear ones, have no doubt about that. But you won't be here to watch that. Isn't that pleasant, Harry? Shouldn't you thank me? But I forgot, manners are not among your virtues. Say goodbye to your pathetic life, Harry. Because death is almost here. It might even be painless. After all, I haven't died properly." He finished with a cold laugh.

Harry was trying not to think of anything. He wanted so much more from his life! He was looking forward to living with Sirius and Jennifer, getting back to Andromeda and Ted. He was almost counting the hours when he would finally meet Dora again. He didn't say goodbye to Susan, Hannah, Neville or Hermione. He never told Dora that he fancied her and that he might be possibly in love...

Did he even know what love meant?

He remembered Andromeda staying up late when Dora and he were at Susan's birthday, just to ask them if they needed a warm bowl of soup before turning in.

He remembered Sirius telling him that he was proud to have him as his godson.

He remembered Susan telling him that she would be there for him no matter what.

He remembered Dora holding him tightly when he cried for his parents for the first time.

Was that love? Because if it was, he knew he would terribly miss it.

_Damn Voldemort!_

He didn't hear the rustle of the grass behind him, nor did he hear the words that escaped Voldemort's lips. He just saw the green light speeding towards him, and he didn't close his eyes.


	27. Family Reunion

**27. Family Reunion**

He was confused. Was he dead?

Death certainly wasn't painful then. In fact, it was quite blissful.

He could feel the grass under his naked skin. It was cool, comfortable. Deciding that it wouldn't hurt, he opened his eyes.

He looked around to see a grassy valley at the bottom of a hill. It was sunny and pleasant, but his lack of clothes felt a bit uncomfortable, though he couldn't see anyone around. As soon as he thought it, two things happened. A set of warm shirt and trousers appeared in front of him, and he heard a choking sound. Quickly putting on the clothes, he went to see the source of the sound. It was a baby. A very ugly baby, which reminded him of the bundled Voldemort in Wormtail's arm he saw... was it just an hour or was it a lifetime?

The baby looked like it was in pain, and Harry had an urge to help it. Despite its appearance, it was helpless and seemed to be suffering.

"He is more like you than I suspected."

He turned around in a flash to see two smiling figures behind him. His heart was about to burst as he realized who they were.

"But he looks so much like you!"

He looked at the smiling woman with auburn hair. He knew her face. Dora showed him in his first year. The man with the dark hair looked like an older version of himself.

"Mum? Dad?" he whispered.

Lily Potter strode up and pulled him to an embrace and Harry held her tighter than he ever held something. He was afraid that if he even loosened up, she would disappear.

"Slow there, Harry. You might suffocate your mum." James Potter said with a playful smile and Harry released the woman, looking sheepish.

"Hush you! I'm having a moment with my son." Lily admonished her husband half-heartedly.

James didn't reply. He went forward and redid what his wife was doing moments before.

"Is this... real?" Harry asked with doubt, already fearing the answer. "Or is it just in my head?"

"It is in your head, sweetie, but that doesn't make it unreal, does it?" Lily said kindly.

Harry didn't understand it properly, but he could care less. He had more pressing matters.

"Am I dead? What is this place?"

This time it was James who answered him.

"Just a place we would have liked to meet you, nowhere important. And we think you aren't dead, yet."

"Then how... I mean you are dead, right?" he asked with a bit of hope. Lily's heart broke at his. How she wished she was there for her baby.

"Yes, we are, darling. Why don't you sit down? It might take some time."

He sat down on a bench that wasn't there moments before. The three Potters sat, side by side, the love between them almost visibly radiating.

"You two aren't gonna vanish, are you?" he asked once they were seated. Both of them put an arm around him.

"We won't." Lily promised.

"Cross my heart." James confirmed.

Harry grinned brightly and leaned on their arms. He had been denied this for years. He was going to cherish it as long as he can.

"Let me start you by telling how incredibly proud we both are of you, darling." Lily said with so much love, it moistened up his eyes.

"Yes, son. I can't begin to say how proud I feel when I see my son shaping up to a far better man than I ever was." James said a bit sadly, but then he smiled at Harry. "You are a great man, Harry Potter."

"Thanks dad, thanks mum. You have no idea how much it means to me." He said quietly, not even attempting to hide the tears spilling out from his eyes. What was the point in hiding them?

There was a strange noise behind them and Harry turned. He had forgotten about the ugly baby, which looked pitiful.

"What's that?"

"Something that used to be inside you."

Harry's jaw dropped when James said that. How come something so ugly and pitiful was inside him?

"But dad, it wouldn't fit inside me."

Lily smiled and answered her son's unspoken questions.

"That doesn't matter, honey. It was magically inside you. But what matters is it isn't anymore. The night when we died, it went inside you and lived like a leech. It is called a horcrux."

"Wh... what is a horcrux?"

"It's a piece of someone's soul. In your case, it was a part of Voldemort." She said the last part with an angry look in her face. But Harry had other things in his mind.

"Wait, you mean a part of Voldemort was inside me? But how is it possible?" he was too appalled at the idea of having a piece of that vile wizard being inside him.

"Before we tell you that, you should know why Voldemort didn't die back then." James said gravely. "He found a way to stay alive if he was ever killed. It was a really crude way, but he was blind in his ambition towards immortality. The thing that we call a horcrux is a part of his soul. From what we have seen from here, he has five more horcruxes out of the seven he originally made. The horcrux inside you, of course, is gone. The other one was the diary little Ginny Weasley got into trouble for."

"Tom Riddle's diary? I thought it was creepy the way it died. So why do you say making horcrux is a crude thing? Not that I'm gonna try it, but hiding your soul hardly seems-"

"You don't simply take out your soul and hide it, Harry." Lily explained patiently. "To make a horcrux, you have to tear your soul. And that is done by a horrible way. Murder. Not simply killing, mind, but cold blooded murder. You can kill in self defence, or even rightful vengeance. It will not do any harm to your soul. But when you murder someone without any justified reason, and you enjoy their death, your soul is ripped. Voldemort discovered this dark magic which will help you to capture that ripped part of the soul and store it somewhere safe, so that if you try to kill him, his body will die, but he will stay alive. The only way to kill him is to destroy all his horcruxes, and stay assured, Voldemort has protected them pretty well."

There was a long pause after this wile Harry was waiting for everything to sink in. How could someone go to such lengths to remain mortal? Especially someone like Voldemort who had nothing but power to tempt him to stay alive?

"But if the horcrux is gone, doesn't it mean that I'm gone too? I mean shouldn't I be dead?"

"You should be." James agreed. "But your wonderful mother sacrificed her life to save you from Voldemort with the help of an ancient magic, which, long story short, means that if you wish, you can go back."

Harry looked at his mother with wonder and overwhelming love. Slowly, he hugged his mother again, trying to deliver all his emotions through the hug, and from her watery smile, she seemed to understand.

"Thanks mum." He whispered. "You could have just moved away. I think Voldemort would have spared you."

"But I didn't. And if I were given another chance, I'd do the same thing a thousand times over. I love you, baby, and I'd never let that monster harm you." She sobbed on his shoulders and James put an arm around his son and his wife. If Voldemort was allergic to love, this place would burn him to ashes within seconds.

"If I go back, can you come with me?" Harry asked childishly, already knowing the answer. James smiled sadly and shook his head.

"I want to go back, but I don't want to leave you."

"But that is life, sweetheart. You have no idea how much I wished I was there to raise you when I saw my own sister and her whale of a husband did what they did to you. I never knew Pet hated me this much." She looked betrayed for a moment, and then turned back to Harry. "We couldn't be happier if you decided to stay with us. But you have so many people waiting for you, Harry. If you decide to share this little reunion of ours to anyone, please tell Andromeda and Ted that we are so much grateful to them."

"And give the mutt a kick in the bum for going after Pettigrew first rather than looking for you," James added. "But tell him that we forgive him. That is, if you do share this with him."

Harry nodded, and then asked, "You think I should keep this a secret?"

"Depends on the person." Said Lily. "I suggest you don't tell it to everyone, not right away, at least. Tell only those you trust completely. And you might have to be a bit careful using your magic."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked nervously. _Did he lose his magic? _He thought with panic.

"Nothing bad, dear." Lily assured. "You remember how I said that thing over there lived as a leech?"

Harry nodded.

"Well, it acted like all leeches do, draining your magic. No need to be alarmed, now. Magic is like physical growth, only smarter. It recognized that something is taking up more magic than it is producing, and it produced more to reach your demands."

"I don't understand." A confused Harry told his mother.

"Think of your magic as Hagrid. Say he goes to live with the Giants, all of whom are stronger than him. By working like them, he will become stronger, because their works are harder, and his body will build up the necessary strength to carry out the usual chores of the giants. So far clear?"

Getting a nod from Harry, Lily carried on. "Now say he comes back to live with humans. He will seem unnaturally strong to us, wouldn't he? Because our stuff is now easier for him and he can do it without any real effort. You understand?"

Harry nodded thoughtfully. "So that means this... horcrux sort of blocked my magic and now it's gone, I am left with more magic than usual?"

"That's right." James confirmed. "Previously, you were using a mere fifth of your real magical power. Now, you will have access to full of it. So the amount of power you consciously put to say, roast a chicken can now burn down a small house. So be careful with it. Practise a few times in the forbidden forest if you want to be attuned to it."

Harry nodded dumbly. It was all too much to take at once. In the space of a couple of hours, he fought his way through a death maze, fought an Acromantula, won the Triwizard Tournament jointly with Viktor Krum, got tricked into saying a password to a portkey, which transferred him and Viktor to an old graveyard, had his blood taken to resurrect the most feared dark wizard of the century, got cruciated multiple times, died, met his dead parents, learnt the he had a piece of Voldemort since he was one and that he was five times more powerful than he was previously. _Not a dull evening_, he had to admit.

"I think he might be a bit surprised." James whispered to his wife's ear, who glared at him playfully.

"It's a lot to take in. You think we should tell him..." she trailed off, but her husband understood.

"No. Let him find out by himself. Andromeda can take him." James said and Lily nodded. Then she squeezed Harry's hands.

"You okay, sweetheart?"

"I guess." He answered faintly.

"When you go back, ask Andromeda or Sirius to take you to the Hall of Prophecies in the Department of Mysteries. You will find something with your name on it." James said gently.

"What is it?"

"Do you really want to be more shocked now?"

Harry chuckled and shook his head. The little family then talked. Or rather, Harry listened to his parents, relishing their words, and their voices. They told him how proud they were of him, they told him how sorry they were that he had to grow up with the Dursleys. They told him to follow his heart instead of what everyone else would think. They asked him to live his life and enjoy it with loved ones. His father coughed at this point, which, oddly enough, sounded a lot like 'Dora', but they didn't mention it anymore.

"So what do I do when I go back?" he finally asked, reluctant to leave his parents on more time, but knowing that he had a lot of reasons to go back, and it wouldn't be fair for those who cared for him. Most importantly, no one would know about Voldemort returning.

"You might want to see how things are there down there and make a plan." James said with a glint in his eyes. Together, they went to a clear lake, that wasn't there seconds before. The graveyard was clearly visible from here.

"This is what you do." Started Lily.

...

It was chilly.

He opened his eyes to confirm what he saw moments earlier... or was it yet another lifetime? Fortunately, his wand was just a couple centimetres from his hand. Voldemort was clumsily getting to his feet, surrounded by his pathetic followers. He could identify the Crouch guy who took his blood from the silver hand. Ignoring the dull pain in his stomach, he pointed his wand at the man's spine and muttered 'Reducto.'

He wasn't prepared to see the spell literally blow the man apart, covering the others in blood and gore, but he stopped the urge to throw up. Everyone screamed when they saw Harry Potter smiling at them. The boy was hit with a solid Avada Kedavra, for Merlin's sake!

"Hey Tom, you okay?"

"But... how?" Voldemort asked, looking shocked, and a little afraid.

"Guess I'm immune to the killing curse. How are you doing?" he said, and blasting apart another Death Eater and quickly putting up a shield that absorbed all the curses sent at his way. Damn, he was powerful!

"STOP!" screamed Voldemort, his eyes showing hints of fear. "Put your wands away at this instant. This is a command."

All the cloaked figures obeyed.

"Look here, Riddle." Harry started. " You can try to kill me all night and I doubt I'll even have a bruise. You tried to kill me twice, and twice you failed. What makes you think you will succeed the third time? Ironic, isn't it, that you are the one claim to have cheated death and all, and yet you couldn't kill me when I was a baby, or when I was on a full body bind, surrounded by your faithful arse lickers? Let's make a deal. You hand me a Death Eater of my choice, and I let you live."

Voldemort laughed cruelly. "You let me live? You have no idea how to kill me in the first place, you ignorant child!"

"Oh but I do. You see, Malfoy over there handed your precious diary to a friend of mine, and guess what? I destroyed it. So how about the deal?"

Harry watched in satisfaction as Voldemort's face changed from an arrogant sneer to shock, then horror and then to undiluted fury.

"You have no idea what you are-"

"Okay, deal's off." Harry interrupted him and set into action. He sent a stunner at Wormtail, dived to avoid Voldemort's Cruciatus, sent a cutter at a masked Death Eater's wand arm, which promptly fell off, grabbed Pettigrew, and casted the most powerful 'Incendio' he could. He was happy, and slightly sick as he heard the flame getting through Voldemort's hasty shield, and burned part of his wand arm. Along with the wand, of course.

About a quarter of Voldemort's power was gone without that wand. His parents explained that most of the magic that set Voldemort apart from a regular dark wizard was possible because of the modifications he did to the wand itself. It would take years for him to have a wand of that power and magic again, if at all. In his own arrogance, Voldemort never believed that someone would be able to land a spell on him or his wand, which left it as vulnerable as the next wand.

Of course, he was counting on Voldemort underestimating him in this move. He wouldn't be as naive to think that he could cast a flame that would break through Voldemort's full power shield. Not yet, at least. He hoped that Voldemort would be casting a weak shield for a teenage boy and Voldemort neatly stepped into his trap.

He could repair his hand within seconds, but his wand... not so quick.

Not waiting to see Voldemort's wrath, he quickly summoned the cup, which he knew was a two way portkey back to Hogwarts. As soon as the cup reached his hand, he muttered 'halfblood' and felt the familiar tug at the navel.

When his feet touched the ground he immediately looked around for Mr. Edgecombe. To his relief, he wasn't there. Mad-Eye Moody and Dumbledore ran to him, and Professor McGonagall gasped when she saw his bloody form clutching Wormtail in one hand and the Triwizard Cup in the other.

Suddenly, all the exhaustion of the day, all the injuries and the residual pain from the Cruciatus caught up with him, and he dropped to his knees. Remembering the most important task at hand, he looked at Dumbledore, who was already beside him. Whatever his faults, Dumbledore was one man who needed to know this.

"He's back. Voldemort's back." He told the Headmaster, before he fainted.


	28. A Long Overdue Conversation

_A/N: credits to the facebook page '__**Voldemophobia: The Fear Of Having No Nose'**__ for some parts in this chapter. And blame writer's block for the delay._

**28. A Long Overdue Conversation**

"Well, look at the bright side. Pettigrew got kissed. Probably his first."

Harry gave a dry chuckle. Out of all the crappy stuff he was having, he had to admit that it was indeed a good thing.

"Yeah, only if he confirmed my story first, it would almost be perfect."

"I don't think it would've made a difference." Andromeda commented. "Fudge would brush it off as a madman's daydreams or something."

"But if he confessed under Veritaserum-" Harry started to argue, but Andromeda shook her head.

"Then he would say that the Veritaserum was faulty and would just fire the ministry potion maker. He is a man who would kill hundreds without a second thought just to convince himself that he is right. He would go any lengths to prove you wrong."

Harry wanted to curse someone to oblivion, preferable Fudge or Voldemort. With his new extra power, he was sure he could destroy an incompetent wizard like Fudge within seconds. Voldemort... not so easy.

Which reminded him of something he had to do.

"Hey Sirius, can you anyone go to the Department of Mysteries? Or do you need a permission of some sort?"

"I'm not sure. Why do you ask?"

Harry felt a bit hesitant. He told both of them about his meeting with his parents. But he made it sound like he was shot with a curse that sent him to some sort of magical coma. Thankfully, they didn't pry. Now, he had to be a bit careful with his words.

"You know when I... um... met my parents, they asked me to take either of you to the Hall of Prophecies in the Department of Mysteries. So I was wondering if you could take me or would there be trouble..." he trailed off. Andromeda looked thoughtful, but Sirius looked slightly angry.

Before he could ask him about it, there was a loud knock on the door. Andromeda stood up with a slight frown and went to get it. Harry turned his attention back to Sirius.

"What's wrong, Sirius?" he asked curiously. Sirius scowled heavily.

"There was a prophecy in your name. James and Lily went to hiding for it. They must've been talking about it."

"A prophecy in my name? What did it say?" Harry asked warily. Sirius huffed in frustration.

"I don't know. But I'll guess it has something to do with Voldemort. I asked James and Lily to keep it to themselves." He said with a bit of regret. He was obviously thinking about when he turned down their offer to be the Secret Keeper.

"Hey Padfoot, I told you that they don't blame you, didn't I?" Sirius smiled at him.

"Yeah you did. Now let's see what's taking Meda so long."

They didn't have to, however, even get up because Andromeda came back right then. She was sniffing and her eyes were a bit red. That sent off an alarm in Harry because he never saw Andromeda crying. What was it?

"What's wrong Meda?" Sirius asked worriedly, getting up.

"Who was it?" Harry asked in a similar tone.

"That would be me."

...

Lucius Malfoy got up clumsily, fearing that he might fall down any second. Thankfully, his cane and his legs were able to carry him to the door. Hands shaking badly, he turned the serpent's head that gave access to his bedroom. He sank down to the bed and panted heavily.

Having his wand burned down and losing four Death Eaters in one night has only served to make the Dark Lord angrier than ever. Unfortunately, Lucius seemed to have become his personal practise dummy and as a result, Lucius was finding it quite difficult to walk properly for more than a few seconds at a go. Of course, the loss of that thrice damned diary might be a catalyst, but still, what could a mere diary mean to someone as powerful as the Dark Lord?

And the entire fault was of that Potter brat's. He was the root of all the sufferings of Lucius Malfoy. If his son wasn't so incompetent, he could have used him to get to Potter. But he didn't know how a Malfoy could have been so purely dumb.

Of course, Lucius could claim that Draco wasn't exactly his son, because Lucius was... erm... physically unfit to give birth to a child. He tried to convince Narcissa to get pregnant with his brother Aracus, but she refused downright. Aracus was just barely out of Durmstrang, and Narcissa didn't like him.

Desperate to have an heir, he kidnapped a random witch and had Aracus impregnate her. He was told that the girl was a gift for his graduation. She was put under the Imperius while she bore the child, unknown by anyone but him and Narcissa. After Draco's birth, the girl was killed and Draco was magically adopted by the couple. Narcissa, who didn't approve any part of the plan, was told that the girl simply had her memory erased, but in reality, Lucius couldn't afford anyone to get the little Malfoy secret by any means. Everyone knew Draco was Narcissa and Lucius' son, and the future heir to the Malfoy family, once Lucius died. Aracus wouldn't be the heir because he was already the heir of his mother's family.

Shaking the thoughts of not-really-his son, he tried to devise a plan to bring Potter down and make him pay for everything he had ever done. It was time to do some research.

...

"That would be me."

Both men turned towards the newcomer. She was wearing a black leather jacket with dark jeans and heavy black boots. She could be passed for Andromeda's twin without a doubt. The only difference was that this woman had a bubblegum pink hair whereas Andromeda's hair was dark brown and unlike Andromeda, she was smiling mischievously.

"Dora." Harry whispered. The newcomer's smile broadened and she promptly threw herself at him, her face changing back to normal as she enveloped Harry in a crushing embrace.

The moment was bittersweet. Both of them went through some of the toughest times of their lives without the other. They were separated when they needed each other the most. And now, after a whole year, they were back in each other's embrace and they never wanted to let go. Harry tried to tell her how much he had missed her through the hug, and she seemed to understand.

After what seemed like eternity, they let go, and unsurprisingly, Tonks was crying. Harry squeezed her hand in a reassuring gesture. He felt a bit teary himself. How could he not, given how much he missed her for twelve long months? In a corner of his mind he knew that he hadn't fully grasped the fact that she was really back and it simply wasn't a dream, but he could deal with it later, he decided. He would have time for that later on.

Sirius looked in wonder as the two communicated easily without any words spoken. It reminded him so much of James and Lily that he momentarily forgot that one of them was fifteen and the other was now a trained Auror of nineteen. He smiled widely as Tonks turned and spread her arms, advancing towards him.

"Hey Nymphie, missed ya." He said with a large grin and snickered as she lightly punched his kidney.

"Watch it Sirius, I know a lot of nasty curses now." She warned him playfully, and laughed as the mutt gulped dramatically.

"Ooh, Merlin save me from Auror Tonks!" he wailed and despite her laughter, she felt a jolt of pride at the title 'Auror Tonks'. Finally, her dreams came true.

"You better watch out, mutt." Andromeda said proudly, looking at her daughter with a large, watery smile.

"She didn't get trained by Mad-Eye, Harry did. Whom would you consider more skilled?" Sirius joked, and Harry had an odd feeling remembering that he was actually more powerful than Tonks.

"Oh, he is a legend there." Tonks said. "They have some jokes running about him at the Academy."

"Like what?" Harry asked curiously.

"One day a basilisk stared at Mad-Eye. Then the basilisk died."

Sirius let out a dog like bark as Harry and Andromeda chuckled with Tonks.

"Oh, don't tell anyone, but that was started by Lily."

"Are you ser- I mean, really?" Andromeda quickly corrected herself before she had to hear that 'sirius-serious' joke again.

"Yeah, she did. She might not have acted like one, but she was mischievous enough to put the Marauder's to shame. Of course, we didn't find that out before Prongs proposed to her."

Harry smiled widely at the mention of his mum. He had witnessed how mischievous she could be, after all.

After chatting lightly with the new Auror, Andromeda finally said, "Okay, we can talk to Dora later, now let her get back to her room and change into something more comfortable. Off you go, dear." She added with a smile at her daughter. It was clear that she terribly missed her daughter for the last year. Tonks grinned at her mum and skipped away towards the stairs, stumbling at the second step.

"Some things never change, huh?" Sirius said with a chuckle.

...

"Come in darling."

With a slightly uneasy smile, Harry entered the room. He hasn't entered this room for since she left, though she wouldn't mind if he had. It looked just like the way he remembered: messy and distinctly flashing her personality.

"Hey Dora, how have you been?" he asked as he sat down on a corner of her bed. Despite what he thought, this felt a little awkward to him. Tonks sat down right beside him, and though she put an arm around him, he could tell that she felt a bit of uneasiness too.

"How is it that we are being awkward?" she asked him, and that one question broke all the barriers between them and he gave her another warm hug which she returned gladly.

"So, care to tell me about your Third Task of the tournament? All I got was a note from mum saying that you won but had some injuries. Did you get your arse kicked?" she asked brightly and Harry flinched mentally.

"What can I say; I swear I died doing it." He replied back easily and Tonks laughed.

"I missed you so much, Harry." She said softly, with a burning sincerity in her voice. He squeezed her palm to tell her that he missed her too.

"You have no idea how hard it was without you to kick my bum." He informed her and she smirked.

"I see you have grown a great bum. What's the secret?" she teased him, slapping his butt playfully. Harry gave a yelp in surprise.

"Hey don't you ever change?" he asked, half embarrassed, half amused. She simply shook her head with a grin.

"So, how is it going?"

"Haven't you been getting the newspaper?" Harry asked darkly. He wasn't looking forward to what would come after he finished his tale.

"Nope. Wasn't allowed. Why? What happened?" she asked with concern.

"Let's start from the Third Task then." Harry said in a tired voice.

After twenty minutes, Tonks' head was spinning. She wanted to murder Fudge for everything he did. She wanted to cry her eyes out for what Harry had to endure. She wanted to snog him senseless for what he did to Voldemort. She also wanted to do a hell lot of other things, but she had to remain satisfied with just holding the poor boy tightly.

Wait, did she said she wanted to snog him?

Oh Merlin.

"Dora?" he called her softly.

"Hmm dear?"

"Do I disgust you?" he asked fearfully and Tonks was shocked.

"Why the hell would you disgust me?"

He looked like it caused him great deal of pain to admit it, but finally he got it out. "I killed someone."

"What? Who? When?" she asked, bewildered.

"In the graveyard. Riddle's followers. They had their backs turned and I shot them from... behind. I... can't give life to a simple bacteria, but I killed a couple of people within minutes. Does it make me a monster like... him?"

It was obvious that he kept that guilt in his chest for a long time. She pulled him closer and kissed him on the cheek. At the academy, she was told about the guilt when you kill for the first time. If you have a good mind, that guilt could be very powerful. And harmful.

"Listen to me. If you didn't kill them, they would've killed you. Which one do you prefer? Being dead or alive? Voldemort doesn't kill for self defence. He kills for the joy of it. You are nothing like him, sweetheart. You are a far better person than he could ever hope to be."

"But I hit them from behind." He said miserably. It was a cowardly thing to do.

"Well they should have thought of checking their behinds, shouldn't they? You had a chance and you took it. The Death Eaters wouldn't mind attacking you from behind, and I don't mean it the fun way." She added with a smirk and was satisfied to see the slight smile on his lips.

"Did you have to say that?" he accused her playfully.

"Why not? People do that all the time. You should try it sometimes. I heard it can be fun. Not with the Death Eaters, though."

"Yuck! Not an hour since you are back and you already start giving me images."

She winked at him. "Glad to be of service, good sir."

He just laughed a bit and shoved her shoulder playfully. She grinned, happy to have successfully diverted his thoughts from the guilt. As she rested her head on his shoulders, she began to go through the whole thing slowly. She was so overwhelmed the first time that she could barely focus on the details. No sooner than she started, what he said at first registered in her mind.

"Can you tell me a truth Harry?" she asked, heart beating fast in what she could comprehend.

"Sure, what is it?"

"You really died doing it, didn't you?"

Harry looked down. He didn't tell about his death to anyone, neither about the horcrux that was inside him. But if he wanted to tell someone, it was definitely the young Auror in front of him. Slowly, he nodded, not meeting her eyes. She was silent for a long time and he looked up to see her mouth hanging open. She was clearly in shock.

"Dora?" he called worriedly.

"Bu... but how? How did you survive again?" she managed to ask. He gave another sigh before answering.

"Remember how I told you about the horcruxes?"

She nodded.

"I was one of them."

She was now officially lost. Her precious Harry used to be a part of... that evil bastard?

"I don't... understand..."

"When his curse backfired at him all those years ago, he created a horcrux unintentionally. His soul was ripped and his body destroyed. So that part of soul became attached to the only living thing there."

"You."

"Yes, me."

"Okay, so what happened to it?"

"It acted as a leech, draining from my magic. Once Voldemort hit me with the Killing Curse in the graveyard, that horcrux was destroyed. I wanted to vomit when I learnt that an ugly baby was inside me all the time."

"An ugly baby inside you? Oh Merlin, it's true!" she suddenly said with a grin.

"What's true?" he asked confusedly.

"Well, I read a story where two guys shag and one guy gets pregnant. Hestia said it was the weirdest bullshit she ever heard, but there you go. You were almost a mum!"

Harry blushed tomato red and almost shouted, "I didn't shag a guy!"

"Good to know, neither did I." Came a voice and Harry groaned when he saw Sirius poking his head through the door. Harry groaned. Apparently, his loud proclamation attracted his attention.

"Sirius, go away!" Harry whined.

"So that you can shag a girl?" he quipped.

"Yeah." Dora answered for him. "Just so you know Harry here doesn't like it from behind."

Sirius went away, roaring in laughter. Tonks laughed at his beet red face.

"You done messing with me?" he grumbled and she smirked.

"Not yet." She whispered. Then she cupped his face with a mischievous grin and slowly pressed her lips against his.

Her lips were soft, warm and wonderful. He could taste her lip balm and he could taste... her. It was almost heaven. He kissed her back gently. Their lips moved in perfect rhythm.

Too soon for his liking, she broke away. He flushed when he realized what he was actually doing.

"Ooh. Someone likes doing that." She teased him. "You were amazing, by the way, been practising much?"

"Only for you luv." He shot back and to his immense surprise, she actually blushed a bit.

"Okay, now get that shit eating grin off your face or people would think we were really shagging. I hope you didn't practise that too?" she nudged him with a grin and he simply shook his head. She was impossible. And a top class kisser. Not that he had anything to compare with, but it couldn't be better, could it?

"Why did you do that, Dora?" he asked her quietly. Though he did enjoy it immensely, it wouldn't help at all when she would fall for another guy and Harry would be just a 'good friend' to her.

"Because I can." She said simply and Harry dropped the subject. He might have admitted to himself that he loved her, but he wasn't in a hurry to admit it to her. If he ever did it, that is.

They sat there silently for a couple of minutes while Tonks went through the details again, trying very hard not to dwell on exactly how wonderful Harry was as a kisser.

"Harry?"

"Hmm?"

"You said you told Voldemort about how you destroyed his diary, didn't you?"

"Yeah." He said with an evil grin. "Lucius Malfoy might lose a few limbs for that."

She chuckled before pressing on. "But now he knows that you now know about his horcruxes. You said that you know where the rest of them were, but what if he changes their locations now?"

Harry grinned at her question, thinking about his time back with his parents. Apparently, Lily had a great idea for her son.

"I am actually hoping that he would go to check on his horcruxes, Dora. Oh, it would be so much fun!"

Tonks looked warily at the giggling boy in front of her.


	29. Truth

_**TheWickedTruth89 **__gets the virtual Christmas socks designed by Dobby for the 700__th__ review. And I apologize for the long delays between updates. I sit idle almost all day, and yet the words don't flow. It's frustrating, really._

**29. Truth**

She sighed in frustration. These two seriously needed to come clear. Unfortunately, Susan didn't know how to approach Tonks about her feelings regarding Harry without feeling nosey and possibly over smart. Tonks was her friend, no doubt, but they had an age difference which meant she couldn't possibly pry the older girl about her love life, though Tonks had given her pointers for her new boyfriend Dean.

"Didn't she ever tell you anything about her past flings?" Harry asked with the tone of someone trying to grasp at straws. Susan grimaced.

"She did, but they were not good things, Harry. She only told me them to warn me about what type of boys to avoid and what type of boys to spray pepper or hex. Her experience in dating wasn't very pleasant, Harry. And she never told me about her feelings towards any guys. You have to do it yourself, it seems." She finished with an apologetic look.

"Don't worry Sue. I'll manage. I guess I already knew that if I wanted to I would have to do it myself, I was just trying for an easier way." Harry said sadly. He could imagine Dora's reaction if he actually did proclaim his undying love for her. She would say that she was too older for him, and that she didn't mean anything with their kisses and that he should look for someone who was better suited for him. She wouldn't want to hurt his feelings and say that he was just too young and that she wasn't interested and that she saw him just as a really good friend.

"Don't worry too much over it Harry. I know she means a lot to you, which is why I won't say that if she doesn't return your feelings you can try other girls. But it is true. If I know her, she will at least give you a chance, but if it doesn't work out you can still have her as a friend though it would be a bit awkward-"

"Susan you are rambling."

Susan blushed a bit and looked sheepish at an amused Harry.

"Sorry, it's just that I can't help you and I feel bad for that-"

"Don't feel bad. Actually you did help me. Now I know that I should do this myself if I have to. Don't worry about it."

Susan smiled.

...

"Are you sure we should do that?"

"What do you mean? You want to disobey an order?" the other asked irritably.

"No, of course not, but let's face it, what are the possibilities that we can actually pull it off?" the first one asked worriedly.

The other's face hardened in determination. He believed he could do it, whatever the other pathetic loser thought or said.

"You should've stayed home."

"Maybe I should have." He said worriedly as the other one threw him a look of disgust.

Silently, they entered the creepy cave and searched for a chain that would summon a boat. And they would then ride that boat to get to the middle of the green lake. Just like they were instructed to do.

...

"Can't say I'm surprised." Commented Sirius. "The way Voldemort is hell bent over catching you, I actually expected something like this. That doesn't give me any comfort, though."

Andromeda looked like she had a terrible headache and Tonks had a steely look. The only person who remained expressionless was Harry. Like Sirius, he expected this too. But unlike Sirius, he had inkling on what to do. The only sad thing was that he could not do magic outside school. And since the ministry wouldn't believe him, he had to tell everything to Sirius and Andromeda like he told Dora. He had to see if they were willing to do him some favours.

"We should destroy it." Andromeda suddenly said.

"Why? Destroying it wouldn't change anything." Sirius said regretfully.

"Not that. Voldemort would want it. From what we know, he doesn't know the full content of it, and we must not lose this advantage."

Considering his favourite cousin's words for a few seconds, Sirius nodded and pointed his wand at the crystal ball.

"REDUCTO!"

...

"Headmaster!"

Albus Dumbledore turned around at the panting man.

"Good evening, Arthur. Lemon Drops?" he offered a bowl to the redheaded man. He shook his head.

"No thanks. Listen, I was on guard duty from this afternoon and out of curiosity I went towards the you-know-what, and... it's gone!"

The old man's face changed from interest to worry in an instant.

"What? But... when did you realize this?" he asked urgently.

"A few minutes back."

"Who was on guard before you?"

"It was unguarded before that, Headmaster. The Unspeakables are there at that time. You told us that it wasn't necessary to guard it at that time."

"Yes yes, I do remember that. Thank you for notifying me right away. You can go home now." Albus politely waved at his door and Arthur Weasley excused himself from the room.

Closing the door behind Arthur, he sent a patronus to the Potions Master, telling him to meet him as soon as possible.

After a few moments, the displeased face of Severus Snape appeared in the room.

"I hope there is a very good reason why you called me here Headmaster as I was-"

"Severus, the prophecy is gone."

There was an awkward silence where Snape went from being indignant at being interrupted in his rant to being shocked. The Dark Lord would not leave his current residence to retrieve the Prophecy, as he clearly expressed that he planned to operate quietly for some time while the Ministry leads the people to a false sense of security. Then he would attack when they were most vulnerable. Just like the true heir of Slytherin.

"The Dark Lord wouldn't do that."

"But you said he wants it badly." Dumbledore tried to reason with him.

"Yes I said that. Through Potter, not by himself. He discovered that he shares a connection with that brat and he plans to use it to his advantage. Though he did mention that he was having troubles to find that connection recently."

"Maybe Andromeda is teaching him Occlumency." Dumbledore said hopefully.

"Oh please, the boy doesn't have any focus of mind to learn the art of Occlumency, much less to stop the Dark Lord." Snape said with a sneer.

"Severus, from what I have witnessed about Harry, if he is determined to do something, he will move mountains to achieve it. But unfortunately, the only time he is determined is when he feels threatened."

"Why don't we hold a few of his little friends hostage and get things done, then?" Snape asked with sarcasm.

"I am not willing to take that risk with someone who scares off dragons and sets fire to the wand of Lord Voldemort. If you want to try, be my guest."

Snape sneered.

...

The boy in question was having a hard time concentrating in the conversations. Tonks was filling Susan in with the information about the prophecy and the horcruxes. Getting a nod from Harry, she told her about Harry's 'first death', too. Harry trusted Susan with his life and he felt like he shouldn't hide something this important from his sister in all but blood.

But right now, Harry had other things in his mind. Tonks was wearing her tight leather jacket, which complimented her well developed breasts infuriatingly well. He was trying so hard to not let his eyes wander and he was sure that Susan threw him a knowing smirk or two.

"-but he didn't tell me how. Care to explain, Harry?" Tonks was asking him. Quickly, he pulled himself together and managed an eloquent "huh?"

Tonks rolled her eyes at him. "You can stare at my breasts later, Harry. I'm not going anywhere."

"Wha- I'm not... why on... your.." Harry spluttered, crimson in face. Susan giggled madly and he tried to glare indignantly at her.

"Yeah sure you weren't. You were just appreciating the fabric of my jacket. Now tell us how exactly do you know about the other horcruxes and their positions. Then you can go back to appreciating my jacket or whatever it is you were doing." She added the last part with a wink.

Ignoring it, Harry went into an explanation, glad for the subject change. "You know that Voldemort was bodiless from the night he attempted to kill me. Mum thinks that it is not possible for a mere spirit to create a horcrux. So I was the last horcrux he made up to that night at the graveyard.

"Now, every horcrux was once a piece of him. Which means the horcrux inside me knew everything he knew until he tried to kill me. Mum extracted information on the whereabouts and protections on the other horcruxes, and together with dad, they left some nasty surprises for old Tom if he goes on to check his horcruxes. And the best part is he can't create more horcruxes, as he already reached seven. Making more of them would literally tear him apart."

They sat in silence for a few moments as the girls thought through everything.

"Wow. You weren't kidding when you said this was dark stuff." Susan commented and Harry smiled dryly.

Later that day, after Susan was gone, an unexpected visitor came. Albus Dumbledore, in Harry's opinion, looked quite tensed. For once, he didn't go through his usual 'lemon drops, nice weather, greater good, I want the best for everyone, etc' crap. After quick greetings with everyone, he asked Harry if his scar hurt at all. When he replied negative, he asked if he was taking Occlumency lessons from Andromeda. Before he could reply, however, Andromeda told him that she was indeed giving him the lessons. Satisfied, Dumbledore requested Harry and Tonks for some privacy and talked with Sirius and Andromeda with some privacy charms on.

"Why do you think Andromeda lied about the lessons?" he asked Tonks once they were in his room. She shrugged.

"Beats me. There is probably a good reason, though."

Harry nodded absentmindedly. While he finally learnt restraint from staring at Tonks, he still was confused about his feelings towards the older girl. The Gryffindor in him urged him to go forward and proclaim his strong love towards her, but the other, rational part wanted to curl up and die in some remote place before he admitted that to her. Out of the corner of his eyes he watched as she twirled a few strands of violet hair in her fingers with a distracted look, her eyes out of focus. She looked so adorable like that!

A knock on the door shook them out of their thoughts, as Andromeda entered the room with a scowling Sirius trailing behind.

"What did he want?" Tonks asked her mother.

"He wanted to know if Harry knows anything about the Prophecy, because apparently the Order has been guarding it and they realized it isn't there."

"What's the order?" Harry asked and this time Sirius answered.

"The Order of the Phoenix is a secret group of wizards and witches led by Dumbledore whose motive is to fight Voldemort and his forces while the ministry is busy messing things up."

"Oh. Sounds cool. Who's in it?"

"I was, last time, along with your and Neville's parents. Many other people were there too. You already know Mad-Eye." He replied.

"Was mum there?" Tonks asked. Andromeda shook her head.

"No. I was invited, but I didn't join."

Thankfully, no one asked her why.

"Dumbledore wants my house." Sirius said, scowling again.

"He wants your house?" Tonks asked incredulously. Whatever the Headmaster was, he didn't look like a-

"Not like that! He asked me if he could use it as the Headquarter of the Order. That means it will be practically occupied all the time by someone of the Order. Jennifer wouldn't complain, but I know she won't be very happy about it either. Come to think of it, even I would be pissed if some strange bloke wanders around my house at odd times."

"Then say no." Harry said it like it was the most obvious answer and Andromeda nodded in agreement. Sirius sighed.

"I would have, but then he would give me these disappointed looks that I can't stand. He won't say it, but he has a way of making me feel that I am not taking the responsibility-"

"Well I think he did not carry out his own responsibility when you were thrown to Azkaban." Tonks interrupted loudly. "He didn't check if his precious Order member was actually guilty when he saw you in that hellhole. Why would you care if he is disappointed in you? You should be disappointed in him." She finished forcefully and Sirius looked thoughtful.

"Your daughter has a point, actually." He finally told Andromeda, who rolled her eyes.

"I've been trying to tell that to you for the last two years. Now my daughter has a point?"

Sirius had the manners to look sheepish. "Er... I guess I had to hear it from another mouth."

As Andromeda shook her head in amused exasperation, Harry asked her the question he had in mind.

"Andromeda, why did you say that you were giving me Occlumency lessons?"

"Oh that. Did you tell Dumbledore about your meeting with James and Lily?" she asked and he shook his head, indicating that he did not. "I think he suspects something. If you said your scar stopped hurting without any reason, he would get even more suspicious. And I don't trust the man to take that risk. You never know what he would do to make things go according to his plan."

"And what did you tell him about the Prophecy?" Tonks asked.

"Sirius tried to rub it in his crooked nose that we took it from the ministry without his Order having any clue." Andromeda said with a fond grin.

"Well, we did." Winked Sirius.

...

"What do you have to say, Lucius?" Voldemort asked the frail looking man in a high, cold voice.

"My Lord, the two Death Eaters that you sent was supposed to report back yesterday. None of them has returned yet and the surroundings are deserted as before."

"Very well." Replied Voldemort. He wasn't sure what that meant. Were the worthless recruits dragged under the lake by the inferi? Were there any other incidents? Or did they simply flee?

Lucius became hopeful at the absence of fury in his master's voice. Maybe the two new Death Eaters weren't meant to come back, which meant the mission was successful/ which meant that the Lord might be feeling merciful today-

"Crucio!"

Or maybe not.

...

It was almost painful. There she was, humming a tune that sounded familiar, looking at the dark sky through the open window, fingers strumming lightly on the chair she sat on. She looked carefree, content, and beautiful, he decided, watching her over the book he was supposed to be reading.

_Go tell her!_

But she will laugh at me.

_No she won't. Worst of all, she will politely reject._

Not much of a comforting thought.

The voices in his head were battling endlessly. He couldn't decide if he wanted to put their friendship at stake and tell her everything, or to stay satisfied with what he had and try to bury his feelings deep inside. It was a big and risky gamble.

She looks cute when she bites her lips like that, he observed.

It tastes wonderful, too. He smiled, thinking of the time she kissed him.

_Maybe she is waiting for you to take the first step. Maybe she likes you._

She came from the Auror Academy and she likes a four- fifteen year old schoolboy?

_You mean a lot to her._

Yeah, as a friend.

_Grow a pair!_

Grow a brain!

He was having a headache with the voices arguing back and forth in his head and forced himself to look at the Arithmancy book he was holding.

_William's Law states that if a caster puts strong, appropriate emotions behind a spell, the spell will be stronger. The Hulg Rune describes the relation between the effects of a spell and the emotion behind it. If the emotion is stronger..._

My emotion is definitely stronger. Just look at her!

_Exactly, look at her! Take your chance!_

But she is older than me.

_And your point is?_

"Hey Dora." He called out, unable to bear it any longer. She was a bit startled.

"Hmph- yeah?"

Now what?

_Tell her!_

Are you mental?

_Just do it._

But I am scared.

_It is alright to be scared._

But I am a Gryffindor. Why am I scared?

_Courage is not the absence of fear. Courage is knowing that something else is more important than fear._

Oh great. My own brain is feeding me cheesy quotes.

"Harry?"

"Yeah?"

"You want so say something?" she asked him curiously, watching his panicked expression.

"Um..." he wasn't sure what to do, so he went closer to her. He didn't want to have this conversation in a loud volume.

"Harry are you alright?" she sounded worried.

Oh God she cares about me. What if this destroys our friendship?

_It won't. Just say it._

He cleared his throat before speaking. It was very dry.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thing is... I want to tell you something. Can you promise not to laugh?" he blurted, and mentally kicked himself.

Real smooth.

"Okay. But if it is very funny, I just might." She said with a grin.

Oh Merlin she is beautiful.

"Your hair looks nice today."

Awkward silence followed.

"Um... thanks. But why would I want to laugh at that?" she asked, confused.

"Er... that's not what I wanted to say. What I actually want to say is that I think you are beautiful and I... I think I am in love with you."

There you go. End of the world.

_Not yet._

She looked like someone petrified her. After twenty agonizing seconds, she let out a weak laugh.

"You... you are kidding, right?"

Harry managed not to wince. There you go, she actually laughed. He had half a mind to say he was actually kidding.

"No. I'm sorry Dora, I shouldn't have said it. You probably- hmmph!"

He was cut off mid sentence as he was tackled down with a ferocious kiss that took his breath away.

_A/N: Review please?_


	30. Friendly Voices

_A/N: Some readers pointed this out and I apologize. Last chapter was quite disorienting as I am having difficulty at making the words flow. Also I'm sorry for the long delay. I got my hands on Mass Effect 3 and got carried away. I promise the next update will be on my birthday, which is quite soon. Thanks to __**HoosierCullen**__ for the 800__th__ review. Enjoy!_

**30. Friendly Voices**

He felt dizzy as they finally separated for air. The taste of her lips still lingered on his mouth and he smiled dazedly at the memory.

Well, that was one reaction he wasn't expecting. Hoping, maybe, but definitely not expecting this. But then again, it was Dora. She said herself that she kissed him just because she could. The thought wiped off the grin from his face.

"Dora?" he whispered, being so close to her that he could observe every tiny curve in her lips.

Her smile faltered a bit as she understood what was coming next. She didn't know what to say or what to do. What Harry said was so unexpected that she acted on impulse and snogged the poor boy senseless. Now she thought about it, she didn't know if that was the right thing to do. She was afraid that he had mistaken teenage lust for real love. She gave him the taste of a good snog, and taunted him by wearing tight clothes which would make him gawk at her breasts. But she did all that just to get a rise out of him. She liked to mess with him, and now she was facing the consequence.

It wasn't that she thought Harry was too young or anything. Sure, he was fifteen and she was nineteen, but if her dating experiences said something, Harry was a far cry from all the lousy jerks she ever dated. He was sweet, kind, funny, cute and incredibly noble. Most importantly, he cared for her. He didn't do anything just to get on her good books, he genuinely cared for her. And that was the worst part.

He was probably saying this because he found her attractive (the thought pleased her, surprisingly) and he knew a very limited number of girls who really cared about him for who he was. As he confessed to her, he saw Susan as a sister, Hermione didn't attract him, and Hannah was taken by Neville, so that left just her. It wasn't hard to see that even though he didn't realize it yet, he was actually acting out of desperation, fuelled by the hormones building up inside him.

"Dora, please say something." He pleaded and now it was her who panicked. What was she supposed to say? Tell him that he was too young? She was too old for her? Or that he was mixing up lust for love?

"Harry, sweetheart, you probably haven't thought this through. I mean-"

"It's okay Dora. I am too young." He said resignedly and it broke her heart to see him so crushed. "I understand." His voice was forcibly steady, but she could sense that it was threatening to crack.

"No darling. It's not that. It is true that I am too old and you could do so much better with a girl who goes to school with you than me. But that's not what I'm talking about." She tried to explain, silently putting up a privacy charm around the room. No one needed to hear this.

"Then tell me what it is, Dora." He raised his voice as his mouth slightly trembled. "Because I know I won't do better. None of the girls I go to school with knows me like you do. They are not the ones I need or want. I asked you because you understand me and you mean so much to me. Tell me why you think I haven't thought it through because believe me, I thought a damn lot about this before I said anything."

She didn't wince as he almost shouted. It made her angry instead. "Because you are too young!" she yelled. "Not too young for me, but too young to understand what you are talking about. Just because you like to look at my tits and you like to be kissed doesn't mean that you are in love with me! It's called lust."

"Lust my arse!" he snapped and Tonks was taken aback by the force in his voice. She always knew that Harry could be a bit hot-headed, but she never had a row with Harry and this was the first time he was raising his voice with her, and he wasn't finished yet. He stood up and continued.

"I know exactly what lust is, thank you very much! You think what I feel for you is lust? Then let me tell you something. When I think of you, I don't think of a girl with great tits or a gorgeous arse. I think of the girl who held me when I was down, who showed me what family really means. I think of a young woman who is funny, cool, and someone I can always count on. You are hot, Dora. But to me the more important thing is that you are beautiful. Does it make sense?"

His voice had gradually calmed down and he said the last part barely in a whisper. She stared at him in wonder. She didn't know why she was trying to come up with another good excuse and a part of her mind suggested that she was afraid of what can possibly come out of this.

"I... I understand Harry, but I don't know... I'm just afraid that if something goes wrong, I'll lose a friend like you." She admitted and Harry gave a hollow laugh.

"It's okay, Dora. If you like someone else, or you just don't like me like that you can just tell me. I knew I never should have asked you, cos I don't think we can go back to where we were from now, no matter how hard we pretend to."

She knew he was right and could really think of nothing else. So she did what she wanted to do from the moment she first held an infant Harry in his arms.

"Okay, so how about we go on a date tomorrow?"

To her pleasant surprise, it was Harry who rushed forward and captured her lips in a kiss that told how much he was hoping for this answer.

...

The man in the dark blue robes scowled at the building in front of him. The house was exactly what he expected to be, knowing who its owner was. That didn't mean he had to like it. It looked like a tasteless rich person's home, which was one of the many descriptions that could be used for Rita Skeeter. Not wanting to stay here longer than necessary, he knocked the door.

A few moments later, Skeeter opened the door.

"Yes? Who are you?"

He didn't react to her rudeness. He just gave his identity and she immediately plastered a wide smile on her face and welcomed him in.

"So how may I help you Mr-"

"My client would be holding a press conference tomorrow. You are invited." He said shortly and her eyes widened.

"That's fantastic! And after the conference I would love to have a private-"

"My client does not wish to grant any interviews at the moment. And in any case, I doubt you would get a chance to catch him in private with journalists from all over the world that would be attending."

Her eyes widened at this. "Merlin's beard, what is the conference about?"

"You'll see. Be present by 10 am."

"Where does he live?"

"The same place where you were trying to hide in his bathroom for a coup last year. Good day."

Skeeter scowled as the man disapparated with a small 'pop' sound.

...

"All the reporters would be arriving within a few minutes. And your guests are here. Should I send them in?"

Getting an affirmative, the secretary went out of the room and ushered the guests in.

As they closed the door behind them, the newcomers exchanged greetings and pleasantries very quickly. They were tensed, but also determined.

"Let's get this over with."

"Let's go."

...

"Ladies and gentlemen, you were invited today for a conference by three people. One of them is, obviously, Viktor Krum. The two others are Fleur Delacour and Cedric Diggory. Before it starts I must warn you that any question about any of their private lives would leave us with no other choice than bodily expelling you from the room." Ignoring the protests of a few reporters, the announcer carried on.

"Now we are clear on that matter, please welcome Mr. Krum, Ms. Delacour and Mr. Diggory."

There was much applause as the trio entered the room, looking very serious. They took the three empty chairs and Fleur and Cedric took a deep breath. Viktor was used to the press, so he remained sulky as usual.

"We ask you to refrain from asking questions until the speaker permits you to do so, but be assured, everyone will get a chance." With that, the announcer stepped down from the raised platform and Fleur stood up. She had been practising English since Viktor first shared the idea with her via owl post.

"Good morning, everyone. As you might be wondering what this eez all about, we will tell that to you soon. You should probably know that the three of us were part of the Triwizard Tournament last year, along with 'Arry Potter. We knew him from the Tournament and this conference eez about him.

"The British press claims that 'Arry is an attention-seeking liar, and your ministry is no doubt behind it. We are 'ere to tell you otherwise. From what we came to know from him and others, we can guarantee that You-Know-Who eez really back, and 'Arry is simply telling ze truth."

A lot of chaos followed the statement, and Fleur sat back, scowling at the disbelieving looks sent her way.

"She is right."

The room grew silent as the star of the show, Viktor Krum, spoke out. The reporters leaned forward to listen.

"She is right because I know the truth. I saw everything. I even saw the British Minister destroying the evidence. Harry captured Peter Pettigrew, but he was kissed by a dementor before he was questioned."

At this point, a blonde witch raised her hand and Krum nodded at her.

"Amanda Larrson, Mr. Krum. When you say you saw it, you mean to say you saw Potter bringing back Pettigrew, don't you?"

"No. I wasn't there at that moment. I think I vas at Hogsmeade then."

"Then what did you see?"

"I saw You-Know-Who returning. Harry and I vas holding the cup together, which vas a portkey, and suddenly someone activated it. We vere taken to a graveyard where a Death Eater shot a Killing curse on me, But Harry saved me by pulling me down. Then I disapparated to another place."

A mousy man raised his hand and without bothering with introductions, he asked his question as soon as Krum nodded.

"If you disapparated to another place how did you see You-Know-Who?" he asked rather aggressively. Apparently, the news was not taken well.

"I didn't say I went to another area. I disapparated behind some bushes to see if I could help Harry in any way. Unfortunately, he was bound and had his blood taken by the same Death Eater who tried to kill me. Using the bones of his father, and one arm from Pettigrew, along vith Harry's blood, some dark ritual was done and You-Know-Who was... resurrected." He finished with a shiver as he remembered the horrific scene.

"Didn't you try to stop him?" a reporter from Germany asked hopefully and Krum looked at him in a disbelieving look.

"You expect me to duel vith You-Know-Who?" he asked incredulously and the man looked sheepish.

"So what happened next, Mr. Krum? A weedy woman asked.

"He summoned his Death Eaters and tortured Harry. With the Cruciatus." He said, ignoring the gasps and mutterings. He noticed Cedric and Fleur grimacing. Fleur actually cried when he first described the events at the graveyard to him and Cedric while Harry was in the hospital wing.

"Then he put the Imperius on him, ordering him to beg for death. But Harry fought it and broke through it."

At this point, he had to stop as the gasps were louder and some reporters almost shouted in surprise.

"He broke You-Know-Who's Imperius?"

"You can't be serious!"

"Merlin's beard, I can't even fight an average Imperius!"

"And he is just what... fifteen?"

"YES!" Krum raised his voice to be gain attention and everyone fell relatively silent once more.

"Yes, he is fifteen and he broke through You-Know-Who's Imperius. I didn't think it vas even possible, but it is true. He even threw a few spells at You-Know-Who, but he vas obviously lacking in the power and experience of You-Know-Who."

At this point he paused, deciding on what to tell. He wouldn't lie, but some things were not for everyone's knowledge. In this little time, however, Rita Skeeter raised her hand.

"Mr. Krum, are you saying that you simply watched as the poor Boy-Who-Lived was being put in pain by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and his followers? You just let it happen without doing anything to help him, as you were supposed to?"

"Yes." Krum replied firmly, not letting the guilt he felt to show in his face. "I didn't go to help him because that wouldn't have helped at all. There vere about twenty Death Eaters and You-Know-Who himself vas there. If I did anything, I would've been killed. And that if I was lucky."

"What happened after that, Mr. Krum?" a burly Russian asked.

"they threw spells at each other for a while and then suddenly both of them fell to the ground. The Death Eaters went to check their master and Harry took out two Death Eaters from behind and flamed You-Know-Who's hand, grabbed Pettigrew and then took the portkey back to Hogwarts. I disapparated to Hogsmeade after that."

"Did you say flamed? As in he burned You-Know-Who's hand?" a dark skinned woman asked disbelievingly.

"Yes. He did. Harry is way more powerful than your average fifteen year old."

With that, he leaned back to his seat and Cedric stood up.

"Since you have no reason to believe what Viktor said, I am going to use this." He pulled out a vial of clear liquid from his pocket. "This is, as you can guess, Veritaserum." And without any further explanation, he administered three drops to Krum and waited for a few seconds.

"What is your name?" he asked, testing the potion.

"Viktor Pavel Krum."

"From what you said in this conference, are there any lies?"

"No."

"So everything you said was true?"

"Yes." He confirmed and Cedric nodded his head in satisfaction. He pulled out the antidote from another pocket and administered it to the Bulgarian, who looked quite relieved.

"How do we know it is not water that Mr. Krum took?" Rita Skeeter asked in a sickly sweet voice.

"You can come up here and take ze potion yourself and demonstrate for ze others. I'm sure we can find some interesting information from you." Fleur said with distaste. Skeeter sulked away.

"So now you all know that You-Know-Who is really back, but instead of even investigating the matter, the British Minister attempted to discredit Harry, with the help of the press, and we have given You-know-Who a critical head start. We really hope that everyone will stand together against this dark forces and together we can get rid of You-Know-Who and his Death Eaters. That will be all. Thanks for coming."

Everyone was scribbling away furiously, but Rita Skeeter had other ideas.

"Miss Delacour, is it true that you and Mr. Diggory are secretly dating-"

Before she could finish her question, Skeeter found herself dumped unceremoniously outside the room by the wards.

"Well, ve did warn her." Krum said amusedly.

...

The result of the press conference was immediate. All over the world, the news was made the headlines, including the Daily Prophet. When everyone learned that the star Bulgarian Seeker confirmed under Veritaserum what the Boy-Who-Lived was telling a few days ago, and that the ministry had been trying to sweep it under the rug, there was instant uproar.

Fudge was thrown from office along with his useless advisor Umbridge after someone (*cough*Amelia*cough*) leaked the fact that Fudge was about to force Umbridge into Hogwarts as the DADA teacher. The Prophet took great pleasure in mentioning that Umbridge actually failed in her own DADA OWLs. Harry was once more a hero, and was considered the Saviour of the Wizarding World, seeing that he already outmatched Voldemort quite a few times.

The new interim Minister was Rufus Scrimegour, but he was expected to be replaced by Amelia Bones as Harry Potter was spotted visiting her office a couple of times, and was known to have a close friendship with Bones' niece.

But Harry really didn't care about all these. He was happy that his friends stood up for him and that everyone knew that Voldemort was back. The people's behaviour would change every once in a while. It wouldn't take them a minute to bring him down to the ground from the where he was considered now. He had learnt to live with it.

Wanting to be on the good side of the Boy-Who-Lived, Scrimegour appointed Auror Tonks for Harry's protection, basically giving her a vacation of sorts. She was to accompany Harry everwhere, and none of them seemed to mind. Harry was excused from the Underage Usage of Magic Law and was given private lessons on apparating with a standing apparition license. He mastered it within a few hours, shocking the instructor and took the license.

It seemed that, after all the crap he had to go through, life was finally starting to give him something good.

_A/N: Review please!_


	31. The Other Side

_A/N: Almost everyone said that the ending of the last chapter was very rushed, so I'll give a little preview in this chapter, and if you still have any confusion, feel free to ask in the reviews._

**31. The Other Side**

Cornelius Fudge was a sad man. Two weeks before, he was the Minister for Magic, and almost everything was going his way. And now he was practically a jobless and disgraced man, and from the reaction he was receiving from the people, he didn't feel safe to get out in the public. And Rufus Scrimegour wasn't listening to his request of providing him protection. The interim Minister said that there was a shortage of Aurors to fight the Death Eaters, let alone for bodyguard duties.

Sometimes Fudge wanted to strangle Dolores for all her ideas that caused his downfall. He knew he should've listened to Amelia Bones instead of that woman. It was a good thing that Dolores was practically under house arrest, because some of the old Aurors were really looking forward to a little chat with her.

Of course there was Dumbledore, who pointed out that this wouldn't have happened if he saw the truth in his and Potter's words earlier, and took necessary actions. He would've been considered a hero, instead of a sorry excuse for a wizard. In his last attempt to keep his chair, he even went to Potter to see if he could gain back some popularity. Unfortunately, the Potter boy insisted that he leave at once. Not letting the insult get to him, he pleaded Harry to see how he was the best man to fix it all if Harry showed some support from him. Instead of answering, Harry threw a newspaper cutting at him which said how Fudge waved off any threats of Voldemort returning and naming Harry as an 'attention-seeking and deluded child'. Then he simply pointed at the door, and seeing defeat, Fudge left.

So he went down, and watched as Scrimegour became the interim Minister. Deep down, he knew that his current position was his own fault, but he didn't want to admit that to himself. Sometimes he imagined bringing down You-Know-Who by himself and becoming the hero again, but he knew it was just a ridiculous fantasy. He was a coward and his skill with a wand was nowhere near a regular Auror, let alone You-Know-Who.

Oh Merlin, he was really pathetic.

...

"Pass the ketchup, handsome."

"Only if you ask nicely."

She leaned and kissed him on the lips.

"That's what I'm talking about." He said with a wink before passing the ketchup bottle.

"Cheeky bugger." She replied amusedly.

They were at McDonald's, enjoying a private dinner after a long day. After Harry received the permit to perform magic outside school, they decided to go Horcrux hunting. A couple of days were spent in planning, and then they had set out. Andromeda had quite a healthy knowledge in the Dark Arts and Harry knew about all the traps and wards put around each horcrux. With occasional helps from Sirius and Tonks, they had a plan for each horcrux noted down. As they suspected that Voldemort might have put Death Eaters on watch, they had to go under the Invisibility Cloak, which meant only two of them could go and they decided to split the work. Andromeda and Sirius went to the Gaunt's house and recovered the ring, and today Harry and Tonks went to the cave. Unfortunately, a person named R.A.B. appeared to have beaten them to it.

"I still can't believe we went through all that trouble for a fake locket." Tonks said sadly and Harry nodded in sympathy. The journey to the cave alone had been quite gloomy, what with dark magic practically oozing from the area.

And then undoing all those traps hadn't been a walk through the park.

The entrance was easy. They captured a rat and used its blood to enter the cave. Then they encountered a black cat.

"A cat? How the hell did it get in?" Tonks said as she tried to move past it but Harry yanked her back.

"NO! Don't cross it." He warned her.

"What? Why?" she asked, bewildered.

"Remember how I told you about the trap my parents put near the horcruxes? This cat is that trap for Voldemort or his pets." He explained.

"A cat? How on earth does a cat serve as a trap?" she asked dubiously, wondering if Harry had gone barmy. She wouldn't be very surprised, though.

"This is not a simple cat, my dear Nymmie. If you cross the cat, you will lose your limbs, and probably dragged into the lake by the inferi. If you try to use magic on it, you don't want to know what will happen. If Riddle came here to check he wouldn't die, as the inferi would follow his orders, but he will have to wait for someone to find him here and help him. And guess how many people even know about this place." He finished with a wicked grin and Tonks nodded with a chuckle.

"So how do we get past it?" she asked.

"Ask it to move, I guess." He said airily.

She looked at him with suspiciously and then faced the cat. "Move aside."

It didn't budge.

"Well?" she looked at Harry, sounding a bit nervous and impatient.

"Say please." He said with suppressed mirth and she threw a dirty look at him.

"Oh mighty cat, king of meowland, would you please care to move aside and let me pass with this cheeky bummer?" she asked exasperatedly.

The cat gave a soft 'meow' and stalked off to a dark part of the cave, where it could no longer be seen.

"There you go, piece of cake!" Harry said cheerfully, despite the chills he could feel. Tonks stuck out her tongue at him and moved forward.

"Urgh what's the smell?" she said after a few moments with wrinkled nose.

"Dunno." He replied, covering his own nose. "But I would guess that someone tried to hex the cat."

With a shudder, she reached for the invisible chain and pulled a boat out of the lake. A hand came out of the water and Tonks gasped.

"Just an inferi." Harry assured her, putting an arm around her, watching the hand return to the green water.

"Thanks." She mumbled, not liking this place at all. Wand at ready, she stepped into the boat.

"Do it quickly." She said, trying to stay focused. Nodding, Harry put the counter-curse on the boat, making it able to carry two people at once. He knew that his magic was high enough to sink the boat even if he was under-aged.

As the boat started to move on, Tonks asked something that has been bugging her for quite a time.

"How did your parents put the cat here, Harry? I mean they are..." she trailed off, not sure how to say it without seeming insensitive.

"Dead. Yeah, they are dead and they can't do magic in the mortal world. And when did I say they put it here themselves? They just gave me the idea and the exact procedure."

"You... you came here before?" she asked, surprised.

"No no. I didn't have to come here. The spell would work from wherever I cast it. I did it at Hogwarts. If I had thought about this earlier, I would've brought the diadem with me, but let's do what we need to do now."

The boat bumped gently on the island and both of them climbed down and went in front of the stone basin. Being an arrogant wizard, Voldemort made sure magic couldn't be used to take the horcrux, but he forgot that the only manual way is not simply drinking it. Getting an affirmative nod from Harry, Tonks reached inside her backpack and took out a drill machine. Trying to block out the noise, she drilled in the stone walls at the bottom of the basin, and soon the slow poison started to pour out of the leak.

Harry, on the other hand, was preparing for the inferi that were coming out of the lake.

"Thanks for the heads up, dad." He whispered before casting a powerful _Incendio. _The huge flame startled Dora, but she kept on drilling until the hole was big enough. She could see the inferi army being burnt to a crisp from Harry's massive flame and just as the last inferi fell or retreated, the basin emptied. Quickly she grabbed the locket and put it in her pocket.

"I'm done. Let's go."

Without a word, Harry climbed back to the boat and once she was in, he tapped his wand on the boat and it moved back to the entrance.

"Where is it?"

She held out the locket in front of him and he frowned.

"This isn't it." He said curtly and she felt a bit hurt.

"How do you know?" she asked irritably and his looks softened.

"I'm sorry, Dora. I know you have done your part right, but this isn't it. There should be a large 'S' on it, and it doesn't feel like a horcrux. Open it."

She did as told and there was a small piece of parchment.

"Oh fuck." She cursed.

After getting out of the cave, Harry contacted with Sirius by his mirror and asked him to meet them. When Sirius saw the initials R.A.B. he looked like he had seen a ghost. He took the locket and went away very quickly, promising that he would contact them very soon.

And now they were having a nice early dinner and hoping that Sirius would bring a lead to the real locket.

"How long do you think it will be before he strikes?" she asked him quietly, idly twiddling a fry between her fingers.

"I don't know. I hope he is stuck in one of those traps and never come out, but he is too smart to step in it. We should finish this horcrux hunt as fast as we can, cause it might get ugly if we take too long." He said grimly.

"And after that?"

He knew what she was talking about and he didn't have an answer. What if Voldemort was mortal? It didn't mean Harry could just drop in after lunch to kill him and come back home by dinner. He knew Voldemort would chase him as long as either of them was alive. And Merlin knew he didn't have a hope of winning a one-on-one battle with Voldemort. He might be close to him in power, but Voldemort's skill and experience would gain him a massive victory. Also, Voldemort wasn't afraid to play dirty. He could torture Harry's friends just to make him mad and lose his cool, but Harry couldn't do that. Mainly because Voldemort doesn't have friends and wouldn't really care about his Death Eaters. In short, Harry had to find a way to face him with some huge advantage if he wanted to defeat him.

In other words, he was screwed.

"I don't know, but I will find a way to get rid of him. I have to, if I want a shot at a normal, happy life. I promise I'll defeat him, Dora." He said quietly, but firmly. Tonks smiled.

...

The two girls hugged and said goodbye and the redhead paused before throwing the floo powder into the fireplace. For some reason, she was having an urge to throw up. She tried to shake it off and stepped in the green flames.

"Mum? Dad?" she called as she whirled out of the fireplace. A little elf appeared in front her.

"Hello Miss Susan, Master and Mistress Bones have gone to talk to Mistress Amelia in her office."

"Oh." She relaxed. "Where is Sam?"

"Little Master is in the garden, playing. Does Miss Susan need anything?"

"To Bob, thanks."

The elf disappeared with a little bow and Susan went to find her little brother. She didn't know why, Sam liked to chase little butterflies in the garden. Harry once said that he might become a Seeker when he would start playing quidditch.

"Sammy!" she called the young boy, who looked unpleased at being interrupted at the middle of catching a butterfly.

"What?"

"Come here."

"But I'm playing, Suzy!" he whined and pouted and she chuckled. She went to him and ruffled his hair.

"Catch that yellow butterfly for me if you want a Honeydukes chocolate." She pointed at a small butterfly not far away. The boy squealed and ran to chase it. As she sat down on the grass to enjoy the show, her thoughts turned to Voldemort and the war that was at their doorstep. And Harry was in the middle of it. She wondered how Harry would take such a responsibility in such a young age-

"Miss Susan!"

Bob the elf interrupted her thoughts, looking much panicked.

"What's wrong Bob?"

"Miss should go to St. Mungo's right now. Take little Master with you Miss."

Normally, she would ask the elf about why she had to go St. Mungo's, but she didn't. Snatching Sam's little hand, she ran towards the house (ignoring his indignant 'HEY!'s) and took the floo to St. Mungo's.

A Ministry witch she met before hurried over to her.

"Susan, are you okay?" she asked with a strained voice.

"I'm fine, my house elf just told me to come here. What happened?" she asked impatiently, hoping Bob made a mistake or-

"The Ministry was attacked. I think that the Death Eaters were sent for Amelia, but they left quite a wreckage. Seven were killed." She said in a quiet voice.

"Is Auntie-"

"Amelia is alive. Badly injured, but she will make it. However, she had two guests in her office..."

"My parents!" she said in horror and the witch looked away and blinked.

"I'm really sorry Susan. I wish I could tell you otherwise, but they were killed by the Avada Kedavra." She said in a choked voice and Susan stood there, shocked to the core.

Mum... Dad... they were... killed.

Dead.

She and Sam were orphans now.

She looked at the little boy, whose face was trembling.

"Mummy and daddy are... dead?" he asked miserably and she pulled him to her, letting the tears fall.

"Yes, Sammy. They are... dead. It's now you... and me." She said between sobs.

The witch beside them didn't know what to say. She could tell them that everything would be alright or that they needed to move on, but how can everything be alright when you just became an orphan? How can you move on when you know that the people who loved you more than anything else would no longer be here? And the worst of all was that it was only going to be worse.

"Come on, Susan. Let's go and see your Aunt. She should be awake by now." She gently placed a hand on the girl's shoulders. The siblings were crying in each other's arms and reluctantly, Susan stood up, carrying Sam in her arms like she did when they were younger, and followed the witch.

"-looks like the dementors were in league with You-Know-Who. Nine out of the ten Aurors on duty were kissed, and the remaining was killed by the Death Eaters. They left behind a couple of prisoners who were totally unbalanced, but all Death Eaters, including the Lestranges are out. This might get very bad, Director."

"That will be all, Williams. Tell the Minister that I will be in contact very soon."

As the man named Williams left, Amelia saw three figures in the doorway, about to get in. As she saw the faces of her niece and nephew, the scene from her office came back with full force and she had to try very hard not to cry. She had to be strong for them now.

"Auntie." Susan's tearstained face nearly broke her heart and she embraced both the siblings tightly, letting them cry in her shoulders. She silently thanked her colleague who brought them here. She nodded and left the family to heal by themselves.

"Why did they kill mummy and daddy?" Sam asked, his eyes red and still flowing.

"Because they were bad people." She replied, gently squeezing her arm around the little boy. Susan broke off and asked, "Did you see who they were?"

Amelia's jaws hardened and she nodded.

"Dolohov. He was leading the group. He killed them and was about to kill me. I shouldn't be alive. I was fighting two others and when I saw that green light... when he turned his wand at me, I was too shocked to respond. Thankfully, Mad-Eye came with reinforcement at that moment. When the Death Eaters realized that they were outnumbered they disapparated away." She said bitterly, hating the fact that her brother and his wife had to die just because they were with him. Susan squeezed her hands comfortingly.

"I heard you were badly injured."

"Nothing much, just a couple of broken bones." She waved off.

"Couple of broken Bones, indeed." Susan whispered sadly.

...

"It's from Sirius." He said excitedly.

Pulling out the letter, he read it quickly and smiled widely. Tonks looked at her questioningly and he handed the letter to her. When she finished reading, she was beaming too.

"Fantastic! Now we just need Sirius and mum to try to confiscate the Lestrange vault and then kill that snake."

"And then Voldemort is mortal again." Harry said with a nod.

"Yeah. I never considered Regulus to be such a... Gryffindor." She commented and Harry had to agree. From what they heard from Sirius, Regulus was supposed to be a coward who didn't like the family traditions, but never had the courage to stand up to his parents like Sirius. Harry never thought he would hear of a 'good Death Eater'.

"I guess he changed... or maybe he had too much." He mused loudly.

"What's that noise?" Tonks suddenly asked.

"Not sure, Andromeda is home, right?"

"She is supposed to be home. Wanna go down and check?"

"Why not?"

Wand in hand, they went downstairs and listened for the noise. It sounded like someone was sniffing.

Odd.

Nodding at Harry, Tonks headed towards the noise and got a shock.

Her mum was crying. In her nineteen years, she never saw her mum cry. It never even occurred to her that her mum could cry like any other human being. She even saw her dad cry when his mum passed away, but her mum...

"Mum? What happened?" she slowly reached her mother and sat beside her. Harry sat down on his other side. Andromeda didn't answer right away. She looked like she was trying very hard to compose herself, but for once in her life, she couldn't.

"There was... an attack on the ministry and... Ted was... killed."

Then she fainted.


	32. Desperate

_A/N: I meant to get this out much earlier, but I was out of town to attend my aunt's funeral. So... enjoy!_

**32. Desperate**

It was an absolute nightmare. He wanted to do something, but there was nothing he could do. Dora was like a stranger now. She didn't even look up when someone would speak. She just woke up, had her meals, sat motionlessly for about an hour and then locked herself up in her room. Andromeda was trying to be strong, but Ted's loss hit her pretty hard. She acted normal, but every time she came out of her room, the redness in her eyes told that things were anything but normal for her.

Harry had hoped that Sirius and Andromeda could pass a bill to the Wizengamot to seize the Gringotts vaults of known Death Eaters to capture the Hufflepuff cup, but he couldn't possibly ask Andromeda to go to the court while she was having difficulty in going to the kitchen. Whatever was needed, Harry would have to do it alone.

He could ask Sirius for help, though. His godfather often came over to check on Andromeda and Dora, but he looked like he'd rather kill some Death Eaters than having to bear the empty looks of his cousin and her daughter. Harry knew the feeling very well, but he didn't want to go live with Sirius and Jennifer either as it would feel like he was abandoning the Tonks family. At night, he would formulate and refine his plans on getting the final horcruxes, which he admitted, were very dangerous, if not outright stupid.

By the middle of July, he decided to stop planning and get to action. He figured that his plan couldn't get any better if he spent three more months on it. After breakfast one morning, he left a note near the fireplace for Andromeda. It said that he was going to Susan's place for a few days to give her company. To keep his word, he went to Susan's place and found the redhead staring into space near the fire. She nearly shrieked, but stopped herself when she saw it was Harry.

She had become thin and her face was a far cry from the usual outbursts of expressions. Nonetheless, she gave him a small smile.

"Hey Sue. How are you holding up?" he asked her gently, sitting next to her.

"Not good." She replied sadly, leaning her head on his shoulders. "I want to do something, but..."

"There's nothing to do." He finished the sentence for her and she nodded. "I felt like that too. Dora has become a stranger. Andromeda tries very hard, but she is hurting. It was totally a nightmare."

She nodded in understanding. "It must be bad for you, being around grieving people all the time."

"It is, but they were my family too. I feel bad that I couldn't do anything that might help-"

"Couldn't?" she asked, noticing the past tense. Harry tensed a bit. He could tell everything to Susan and ask for her opinion, or he could just lie to her and avoid it altogether. Lying would be the easier option, of course, but he didn't like to be lied and he would be a hypocrite to do that to his surrogate sister.

"I have some plans. I am sick of waiting for everything to be perfect again and I'm going to run some errands-"

"Can you take me with you please?" she interrupted him mid-sentence and he was taken aback.

"Take you? But these are... kinda dangerous things I might have to do, Sue."

"I don't care. I want to help. Please Harry." She begged him and Harry understood why. Anything was better than sitting idly and mourning.

"I could take you if you can make your wand untraceable as soon as you can. You need to do magic."

For the first time since she heard about her parents' murder, Susan's eyes shone up.

"Consider it done. So what's the plan?"

...

Holding her now-untraceable wand, Susan levitated the sofa and dropped it back to the ground. It had the desired effect. Harry scrambled up from his slumber and quickly drew out his wand.

"Blimey Sue, you nearly gave me a heart attack!" he exclaimed when he saw Susan smirking. "Wait, how did you get your wand clear so fast? It has been just a few hours."

"Auntie." Was all she explained and Harry understood. There were advantages of having the Minister for Magic as your aunt. Amelia was building up the defence system quickly and trying to ensure the safety of every citizen. Providing her niece an untraceable wand wasn't something she had to think over for long. She knew that the people close to her needed to defend themselves, and Susan was the only family she got left.

"Okay. So which elf should we use?" he asked.

"I can't send Bob because he needs to take care of Sam and Auntie. You can use Sirius' elf, but that would seem suspicious. Do you know any other elves?" she asked, scratching her head.

"I... oh wait, I know an elf, but I don't know if he will listen to me."

"Who is it?"

"Dobby. The one who almost killed me in the attempt of saving my life." He said with a grin and Susan chuckled.

"He is free, right? Why don't you call him and see what happens?" she suggested.

As it turned out, Dobby was quite happy to help 'the great Harry Potter' and Susan was worried that the elf might kill itself from over-excitement.

"Do you remember what do you have to do?" Harry checked one last time.

"Yes Harry Potter! Dobby must find Rodolphus Lestrange and find a place where he can be ambushed."

"Exactly." Harry nodded. "Now go. Try to come fast, but don't overexert yourself, okay?"

"Harry Potter is very kind and noble! Dobby feels honoured to-"

"Dobby go!"

After the elf vanished with a loud crack, Harry turned to Susan.

"This might take a couple of days. What should we do?" he asked her and she thought for a while.

"Let's go to Sirius and ask him to give us some tips in duelling." She suggested.

"Sounds like a plan."

Sirius was an excellent duellist. And Jennifer was no slouch. Both of them volunteered in the training of Harry and Susan and Harry made sure that he held back most of his power during the training. He never told anyone, but his parents gave him quite some training and tips.

One could argue that they were in the 'in-between-limbo' for a very short time, but that's where they would be wrong. Time had no meaning there. He could have spent two whole lifetimes there and it wouldn't be a second in the mortal world. As a matter of fact, Harry spent around two months with his parents when Lily assured him time wasn't flowing at the other side. In this time he had some training that didn't include wandwork, got to know his parents, and simply enjoyed his time with them. It was the reason he now felt a sense of closure over his parents death. Of course he still missed them, but he wouldn't have nightmares for that.

The training with Sirius helped him to get accustomed with his magic. And it didn't hurt that Susan now had a steely determination and was improving alarmingly fast. Harry supposed that losing your parents after spending fifteen years with them was harder than losing them as an infant. She had more memories of her parents than him, and missed them a lot more than he missed his own parents. He guessed that even Sam wouldn't be much better than Susan after maybe a year.

'Who am I to complain if she is getting that good?' he thought to himself as Susan blasted a conjured rat to pieces.

...

She didn't want to get involved in this.

Andromeda Tonks was never known as a coward, but she always wanted to stay away from the first war. She wanted to see Voldemort gone and didn't believe in the pureblood-superiority crap, but fighting the Death Eaters head-on never appealed to her. Call her selfish, but she preferred keeping her family safe and sound over dying in a fight.

Of course, she knew that she couldn't just take a back seat once Voldemort returned, what with Nymphadora being an Auror and Harry living with them. She didn't regret any of these and when she started hunting Voldemort's horcruxes herself, she knew that she would be in the hit list of the Dark Lord soon enough. What hurt the most was the fact that she was completely unharmed and Ted had to die simply because he was at the wrong place in the wrong time.

She still felt hollow when she remembered Ted's smiling face. He was the one who gave her the strength to stand up to her family. He was her pillar, someone she could always count on to lend a sympathetic shoulder.

Everyone knew the tough, cool and slightly frightening Andromeda Tonks. But Ted knew the other side of her. The feminine, loving and humorous side of her. He accepted her despite all her faults. He didn't care that she was a Black, or the fact that she had a large knowledge of Dark Magic. He didn't hold it against her if she acted moody or secretive. He gave her all the space she needed, but never avoided her. He made her feel young and beautiful. Her fellow Slytherins often said that Hufflepuffs were dumb losers, but she found her perfect guy in that Hufflepuff house and together they had their perfect Hufflepuff daughter.

She knew she had to be strong for Nymphadora, but she could was finding it very difficult managing to hold herself together. She rarely saw her daughter except for mealtimes and she knew she was locking herself in her room. She even saw Harry grieving for Ted and poor boy looked lost. She actually felt relieved when she read his note about staying at Susan's place for a while. She could imagine that living with Nymphadora and her would be pretty depressing right now. And heavens knew Susan needed some comfort too.

She was trying to be strong and go back to normal life, even though she knew life would never be the same for her without Ted. She was getting better and she knew that given some time, she could finally come out of her shell.

And then the Death Eaters would regret every moment they lived since they took the Dark Mark.

...

"So we are not going to Knockturn Alley?" Susan asked for confirmation.

"No. It would be far too dangerous." Harry replied, looking at a map of the area surrounding the targeted house. It was a prostitute house just outside Knockturn Alley. According to what Dobby found, two weeks after the Ministry was raided and Azkaban was broken, Rodolphus Lestrange started visiting this place notorious for its dark wards and slightly freaky prostitutes. If anyone entered there with an intention of anything other than shagging a prostitute and paying for it, the wards would dissolve the person's vital organs with their bones, resulting in a horrific death.

"Do you think your cloak would work in that house?"

"I don't know, but I don't want to risk it. Dobby said he always comes down to the bar beside it under glamour charms after he is done. We will wait outside the bar, grab him when he tries to go in."

"But what would you do when he is captured? I mean he is not going to listen to us just because we have him captured." Susan asked, sounding tensed. This wasn't another silly adventure in school. If something went wrong here, it wouldn't be detention or expulsion they would have to worry about. It was a potentially deadly mission as the Death Eater wouldn't hesitate to use the killing curse on either of them.

"Then we make him listen. I will use the Imperius Curse." He said gravely. Susan's eyes widened for a moment but then she nodded in understanding. It was war, and you can't win a war by disarming or stunning. The times were desperate and they had to take desperate measures to do the right thing. Nobody cared about a dead person who followed morals in a fight.

"Have you ever done it before?" she asked him nervously and he quickly shook his head. Sighing, she said, "You need to practise. Put it on me."

Harry stared at her, not sure if he heard it right.

"But it's an Unforgivable, Sue. I can't put you-"

"You can't afford to mess it up on the Death Eater. Put it on me and I will try to resist as much as I can."

When he didn't respond, she took his wand from the table and handed it to him.

"Do it, Harry."

He took a deep breath and cast the spell.

"Imperio!"

He mentally gave his order to Susan, but he could see her fighting. She had a dazed look, but her movements seemed very strained. Knowing that it had failed, he lifted the curse.

"It was very weak." She told him as soon as she was free. "You need to truly desire to control me. Try again."

After five more tries, Susan was dancing stupidly on the table and Harry laughed in relief. He had mastered it and understood the concept. Just for the fun of it, he let her dance for two whole minutes before releasing it.

"Prat!" she punched his arm as soon as she was back in control of her mind, but Harry was too busy laughing to pay attention.

...

She was getting a little worried now. It seemed like Harry hasn't been here for a while. In fact, she didn't even notice since when he wasn't home.

Of course, she had been too sad to pay attention to anything, but that wasn't a good excuse at all. She knew she shouldn't have blocked out everyone like she did. She guessed that her daddy wouldn't be too happy if he knew what she was doing, but she couldn't face it. She didn't want anyone to see her cry anymore. It made her feel weak. But she knew she shouldn't have worried about that.

Sirius would understand.

Harry would definitely understand.

And mum was probably worse off.

Snapping out of the train of depressing thoughts, she wandered around in the kitchen, trying to find any traces of Harry. His room looked unused and cold. Maybe he left for Sirius' place because she had been locking herself away. He would understand, of course, but if she were in his place, she would leave as soon as it wasn't rude anymore.

_I guess it's time to talk to mum._

With a sigh, she went to her parents' room, where Andromeda was sitting idly on the bed, her guards down, her face missing the usual confident and cool mask. She looked deep in thought.

"Mum?" she called with a barely recognisable voice. Lack of use made her voice croaky and unclear.

Andromeda looked surprised to see her daughter, but she quickly smiled when she realized that it was the first time in months her daughter came out of her room other than meal time. She motioned at the spot beside her and her daughter sat down quietly.

There was a moment of awkward silence when none of them were sure what to do next. Then Andromeda put an arm around the younger woman's shoulder and they both fell to a comfortable embrace.

"I've missed you Dora."

She sighed, her head in the crook of her mother's neck, and squeezed her mother's waist.

"Sorry mum."

"It's alright. It will be alright." She murmured.

They knew it would be long before the wounds would heal, but they had to be strong... and stay together. They had to support each other and live on.

"So have you seen Harry around?" Tonks asked after a few minutes of silence.

"Already looking for your boyfriend?" her mother teased and she jumped apart.

"Wha- How on earth did you know that?" she almost shouted, her hair turning to a violent red.

"Know what- wait, you mean he is really your boyfriend?" It was now Andromeda's turn to shout.

"Oh dear god!" Tonks moaned, wishing that the ground would make a crack for her to disappear into.

The awkwardness in the air was so pronounced that it was almost threatening. Andromeda decided to break it a bit.

"Well I guess I could say that your taste has improved significantly." She forced a chuckle.

Tonks looked miserable for a moment before she realized what her mother said.

"Wait, you're not gonna tell me that he is too young for me or something like that?" she asked incredulously. Andromeda looked thoughtful for a moment before answering.

"Well, it's true that he is younger than your usual dates, but he is way more mature than any of them. Sometimes I think he is more mature than even you." She smirked at her daughter's outraged expression. "Don't deny it, Nymphadora. You might be an Auror, but I don't think you can even cook your own meal."

"That's completely beside the point!" she cried.

"If you say so." Andromeda said with a knowing grin. Then she turned serious. "Just one thing, the poor boy has seen enough trouble in his life. And Merlin knows that with the Prophecy above his head, he won't be in peace until Voldemort is gone. What I'm saying is that this may or may not work well between the two of you. Just make sure you don't hurt him more than necessary. And another thing I should tell you as your mother. Before you take a decision make sure you can live with it."

Blue-haired now, she used her metamorphing abilities to stop the blush. Once she calmed down, she spoke in a shaky voice.

"Um... thanks mum. Now as I was asking, where is Harry?"

"He went to Susan's place a few days back."

"Okay. I'll check on him."

...

Harry turned around to check if Susan was okay. She looked a bit pale, but her jaws were set and she looked determined. He nodded at her and held out the Invisibility Cloak and she put it on.

"Now we wait for a while." He whispered and she nodded in understanding.

After what seemed like eternity, the older Lestrange came into sight. He looked drunk, Harry thanked goodness for that. The bulky Death Eater didn't notice the slight distortion in the air in front of him, where Harry was waiting, under the disillusionment charm, to break his fall once Susan hit him with a stunner.

That part went well and Harry was wishing that he was a bit stronger as he struggled to support the burly man's weight. However, he seemed to have deviated from his habits and brought company.

"Rod? You okay?"

The other man, Rabastan Lestrange, came out of the same path and looked suspiciously at the slightly shaking and stiff figure of his brother and pulled out his wand. He saw a red light coming his way out of nowhere and put up a shield just in time.

"Who the-"

His words didn't get the chance to escape his mouth as using the diversion from Susan, Harry threw a colourless freezing charm at him. Predictably, he froze.

"What do we do with him?" Harry asked at the general direction of Susan. He didn't want Voldemort to be aware of anything he was doing, so capturing was out of question. They had a plan for Rodolphus, but the new guy could be a problem.

"We should erase his memory." Susan suggested, nervously glancing around.

"Good call. We can put a tracking charm on him and then send him back. A confundus charm should do it."

"Okay, I'll do it. You try to hold him up a little longer."

Susan sent away a confused looking Rabastan back to the Death Eater headquarters and took position in front of Rodolphus.

"Accio portkey." She whispered, but nothing came. Well, Rodolphus might be arrogant, but she wouldn't complain.

"Ready?" Harry asked Susan, standing directly behind Rodolphus, still under the renewed Disillusionment Charm.

"Yes." She whispered back, stowing away the Death Eater's wand in her pocket. Pointing her own wand at the man in front of her, she muttered, "Rennervate."

"Imperio."

He barely had the time to regain his senses when he was hit from behind and his mind went blank. He felt joyful and relaxed, waiting for any commands.

"You think it worked?" Harry asked Susan, who nodded.

"Susan?"

"Oh right, you can't see me. Yeah, I think it worked. His eyes are glazed over. You should join me now."

The Death Eater showed almost no resistance to the Imperius, and Harry was grateful for that. He expected a notorious Death Eater like Rodolphus to be very much strong and possibly difficult to handle, but this was too easy. What he didn't know was that if another wizard tried to control any of the three Lestranges, they would fight back instantly. But in his excitement of the mission, Harry poured his last bit of will behind the curse. Rodolphus was strong, but when it came to a battle of will power, even Voldemort didn't stand a chance in front of a determined Harry Potter.

Lestrange donned a hooded cloak and quickly moved towards Gringotts. Trailing behind him were Harry and Susan, looking out for any signs of trouble. Harry's father gave him a piece of information about the Cloak he didn't know before. Apparently, James discovered it when all Marauders had to run under the Cloak one night. The Cloak was expandable. Now Harry and Susan could comfortably keep their pace after placing a certain spell at the neck of the cloak.

The goblins didn't react at all when Rodolphus showed his face and ordered a goblin to retrieve a certain cup from the vaults. They seemed bored when the cup disappeared from his hands after it was delivered by the goblin.

"Now we dispose of him." Harry whispered in Susan's ear, trying not to feel bad about it.

"Let's do it quickly." Susan whispered as Harry gave his commands to the man and he began to argue with the goblins about stealing his cup. Soon, he pulled out his wand and threw a flesh cutter at the nearest goblin.

"Let's go." Harry urged Susan out of the building and turned around one last time and immediately wished he hadn't. One of the goblins brought down a gigantic axe and Rodolphus Lestrange was cut in half... vertically.

Susan tried to block out the inhumane scream of the Death Eater but she couldn't. Thankfully, she didn't look back and from the expression in Harry's face, she was glad that she didn't.

"He deserved it, Harry. Remember Neville's parents?" she tried to comfort him as he stared at the cup he held with shaking hands.

"Yeah. He deserved it. And most importantly, we got the horcrux." He said, letting out a breath he didn't realize he was holding.

"Yeah. Mission Successful." Susan said with a half-smile.

"Aye aye, captain!"

_A/N: review please!_


	33. A Trip to Hogwarts

_Thanks to __**Shikamaru4headcaptain **__for the 900__th__ review. I'm getting excited at the thought of the next mark. Thanks for your support guys! And look, this story crossed the 100,000 word landmark. Woot!_

**33. A Trip to Hogwarts**

"YOU DID WHAT?"

"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?"

"ARE YOU SERIOUS?"

Sirius was about to make another joke about it, but a death glare from Andromeda convinced him otherwise. It would've been amusing to watch if not for the two angry Tonks women flanking each side of Sirius.

"Well, it worked." He said meekly, trying not to look at any of the three others. Maybe this wasn't the best idea he ever had. But hey, a victory is a victory!

"YOU BREAK INTO GRINGOTTS AND STEAL RIGHT UNDER THOSE GOBLINS' NOSES-"

"YOU AMBUSH A DEATH EATER ALONE IN KNOCKTURN ALLEY-"

"We didn't have to go inside Knockturn Alley." He mumbled and predictably, it was ignored.

"SO MANY THINGS COULD HAVE WENT WRONG-"

"YOU COULD'VE BEEN KILLED!"

"OKAY I GET IT!" Harry roared to get their attention. Of course he was already the centre of their attention; he just had to get himself heard. As they paused for a moment, he took the opportunity before they started again.

"Look, I know that it was very reckless and potentially dangerous and I understand that I could've been killed several times over. But look at me! I'm safe and unscathed, and I got the horcrux. Not to mention that Rodolphus Lestrange is dead and we can track his brother. Doesn't that count for anything? Don't answer that, it was a rhetorical question. All I'm saying is that I'm sorry that I did all that without telling you anything, but if I had another chance, I wouldn't do anything different."

Andromeda's face softened, but she didn't look happy.

"Harry I am very happy and proud of you for what you did, but you have to understand that we just lost some people we loved. What if everything did not go perfectly? Do you think Dora could take it if something happened to you? I might not have expressed myself that well, but I love you like my own son. Do you think I could bear it if you went the same way as..."

Her voice broke at this point and Harry immediately reached over and hugged her, feeling very guilty. Now that he thought of it, what if something happened to Susan? Could he live with the knowledge that he led her to something and she was...

"I'm sorry Andromeda. It's just... I couldn't just sit around and watch you two grieving. I felt like I had to do something, and this was the best plan I had. I admit I never considered the possibility that something could go wrong in that way." He paused a bit shamefully but after a moment he carried on.

"The thing is I don't have the luxury of staying safe at home. Every day I waste is another day Voldemort can use to gain followers and cause more death and destruction. I won't be able to live with myself if I knew that someone I know died and I could have prevented."

There was a heavy silence that followed this grim reminder of the immense weight of the prophecy that rested on his shoulders. Finally Sirius spoke out.

"We know that Harry. But you have to keep in mind that we all care about you way too much. I won't hide it. I am glad that you decided to do something instead of moping around. It sounds harsh, but the hard truth is that you are right and we have little time to properly grieve for our losses." He knew Andromeda might give him an earful later, but he needed to say this.

"I wholeheartedly support your actions, but I just wish you asked our help. You know I wouldn't turn down an offer for an adventure, but I would make sure that it was safer and that all possible precautions were taken. You are marked by Voldemort, but it wouldn't do us any good if you are killed by an angry goblin or anything. We have to keep you safe so that you can kill Voldemort and we can all live in peace. No pressure on you, of course." He finished with a wink and despite the grim mood, Harry grinned.

"Good to know I am so useful, Padfoot."

...

She hesitated to enter the room. She knew Harry would understand why she couldn't come out of her room or talk with anyone, but she was afraid that Harry had changed his mind about having a girlfriend who doesn't talk with him for weeks. She knew she wouldn't be happy dating with a guy like that. She could've let him comfort her, as it nearly always worked, but she felt she needed to mourn for daddy in private.

It was a good thing that her assignment from the Auror Department was to protect Harry, though she didn't do much of protecting while he stole from Gringotts and finished off a Death Eater in process. If she had to attend office like the other Aurors, she would be fired within a day because she didn't think her face was properly dry for a few days. If she was sent to a mission she would've been dead ten times over because her sensory system was blunt like a tree trunk.

Pushing those thoughts aside, she knocked on his door lightly. When he didn't respond, she pushed the door and found that it was open. Taking a deep breath, she entered.

She released the breath when she saw him. He was laying flat on his stomach, asleep. After all those shouting, he is bound to be tired.

She found that she liked watching him sleep. Peaceful and relaxed, his face tugged at her heart and she felt a great affection for the boy in front of her. She didn't want to wake him up, so she decided to come back later, but a letter in is desk caught her eye.

She knew that she wasn't supposed to read his letter without his permission but she couldn't resist picking up the piece of parchment.

_Dear Harry,_

_How did they take the news? I hope you didn't get into much trouble for it. Can you make sure Auntie doesn't know about my involvement in this? It sounds selfish, but I don't fancy being told off by her. Not to mention that we would have to tell her all about horcruxes. Just try to convince Tonks' mum won't you?_

_How are you holding up? I'm okay, but sometimes I remember that I was responsible for someone's death and I feel like throwing up. I know that he deserved to die and all, but it's still hard to think about. Even writing about it is making me sick. I wonder if it ever goes away._

_Is Tonks talking to you? I know you are pretty upset at her blocking you out, but don't be hard on her, I guess she was really close to her dad and you know her better than I do. Just be patient for a while and she will eventually understand what she is doing._

_That reminds me, I broke up with Dean. Poor guy looked quite relieved. I guess when you told me about Tonks, I realized that I was doing almost the same thing to Dean. He was decent enough that he didn't break it off himself while I was down. I told him that I couldn't give him the attention that he deserved and that if he was still interested, we could try again later._

_Auntie said that I am actually looking better than before. I guess finally 'doing something' was good for me. If you are up for it, come over and visit some time. Sam will be happy to see someone other than me and auntie._

_Love from_

_Susan_

Carefully, she folded the parchment like it was before and tried to stop the whimper. It was clear that she had hurt Harry, badly. And she wondered if he would forgive her. She had been selfish and didn't bother about other people. Now she came to think of it, she wasn't the only one with a loss. Susan lost both of her parents. Though daddy was her favourite, she didn't think that she would be able to bear if mum was...

Feeling the sudden need to be alone, she ran away from the room... or at least tried to.

Her clumsiness took over and she tripped on the carpet and fell with a loud crash.

Harry woke up with a start at the sound and instinctively reached for his wand. What he saw was a bit surprising, but not threatening. A red haired Tonks was sprawled on the floor, cursing under her breath.

"How'd you become an Auror with two left legs like those?" he asked and she sighed loudly.

"You up?" she asked from the floor, attempting to get up to a sitting position.

"Hard to stay asleep with that racket you just made." He pointed out.

"Sorry about that." She said quietly.

Stifling a yawn, he climbed down from the bed and sat beside her on the floor.

"Hey."

She looked at him and managed a small smile.

"Hi yourself."

"How have you been, Dora?"

She closed her eyes, wondering what she should answer.

"I don't know. Okay I guess."

"You sure about that?" he asked, looking intently at her.

She wanted to say yes, but her body betrayed her. Without warning, she leaned on him and broke into sobs. He wrapped his arms around her and held her quietly, rubbing circles on her back. He let her cry for a few minutes, watching her hair changing slowly from a dull blue to a comfortable violet.

"I'm so sorry baby." She said with a sniff after a while.

"For what?"

"For... for everything." She tried to strengthen her voice a bit because she needed to say this. "I'm sorry for ignoring you and everyone else for the last few weeks. I know I shouldn't have done that, but it's just that I couldn't..." she trailed off, her voice threatening to break again.

No one said anything for a while and then Harry started quietly.

"I wish you would let me comfort you. I understand that you had to mourn alone, I really do. We all need some time alone. But when you didn't even look at me for weeks I started to think that I was not important enough to you. I'll be honest with you Dora, I didn't like that feeling at all. I know that you were reluctant to start our... relationship, whatever the hell it is, but I didn't want to be just another guy in your life. I mean-"

"You were never just another guy, Harry. Not in my life or anywhere else. You are always special to me, sweetheart." She beamed at him and he managed a small smile too. Then she turned a bit grim. "I know I haven't been an ideal girlfriend and I wouldn't have anything to say if you dumped my arse. I just want you to know that no matter what, I... I love you." She said the last part quietly, afraid that he would really dump him.

Instead, he gently put a hand in her cheek, gently moving her face to face his own. Then he leaned forward and kissed her softly. It wasn't deep, but it was sweet.

"I love you too Dora." He whispered once he pulled off.

When she snuggled in to him, his arm holding her close, she wondered how the hell she ever managed to get someone as good as him.

...

"Still got your bag?" she asked and he checked his back.

"Yeah. Let's go."

They were standing near Honeydukes, hidden from general view. Looking around to make sure that no one was following them, Harry threw the Invisibility Cloak over the two of them. Tonks put silencing charms on their feet and gave him thumbs up.

Sneaking into Hogwarts was pretty easy. With help of the Marauders' Map, they made their way to the Room of Requirement without a single incident. Well, not counting Tonks slapping Harry's bum playfully once.

Perhaps it was the magic of the Room, or simply a natural occurrence, Harry couldn't remember exactly where in the room the diadem was. It took quite a good deal of time to find the horcrux. Once he saw it, he levitated the diadem to the bag where he was carrying the other horcruxes. It took some more time to locate the entrance of the room, but finally they were heading down to Myrtle's bathroom to the Chamber of Secrets.

Tonks nearly had a heart attack when she saw the dead basilisk. If it wasn't so smelly down here, she would've snogged him senseless.

"Finish it quickly so that we can go home and I will show you how to properly use your tongue in action."

"You minx."

"You bet!"

Laughing at his crazy girlfriend, Harry poured the ring, the cup, the locket and the diadem on the floor. Immediately, the air around them became colder and had a sinister feeling to it. Pulling out two fangs from the basilisk, he handed one to Dora and held the other one firmly.

"It will try to distract you and even control you, so better stab it as soon as you are near it. Okay?"

She nodded resolutely and with a deep breath she went forward, stabbed the tiara and the cup and fell to her knees. The energy backlash from the two destroyed horcruxes knocked all air out of her lungs.

"Dora, you okay?" he knelt beside her, looking worriedly at her hair which has turned white.

"Been better." She mumbled, standing up gingerly. "Can you please finish this quickly?" she pleaded.

Nodding, he went towards the locket and hissed 'Open' in parseltongue.

"_Hello Harry Potter. I see your life and it is now-"_

"Save the emotional speech!" he yelled before driving the fang in the locket.

"Someone screams like a bitch." Tonks commented, once the loud noise was over.

"We all know that Riddle's a bitch. These were parts of him."

The ring was easily destroyed, but Harry was careful not to damage the Resurrection Stone that his parents described to him. He picked the small stone up and put it inside his pocket, making a note to deposit it in his vault the next time he visited Gringotts.

"Just the snake left now, huh?" she said, once they flew out of the Chamber by the school brooms they 'borrowed' on their way.

"Yeah. Then he can die and rot in hell where he belongs to." He said with venom.

He still hadn't figured out how he was going to kill Voldemort. A head on duel was out of the question. He knew even Dumbledore would be hard pressed to defeat Riddle in a duel, and he was nowhere near that level. Maybe he would reach there after thirty more years, but he couldn't afford to wait for that long and watch Voldemort tearing more families apart.

So how the hell would he do that? Or was he actually destined to die in Voldemort's hand like his parents? He didn't like to think that way, but sometimes things would become so hopeless that he had to consider the option where he wouldn't come out as the victorious.

Voldemort would definitely go after the ones that helped him. Susan, Andromeda. Sirius, Jennifer, Neville... Dora. He wouldn't miss the fact that Dora was more than just a friend of Harry. Voldemort could capture Harry and make him watch as he tortured all those were close to him.

_Don't think about that! _He reprimanded his mind and concentrated on the tunnel leading to Honeydukes, Dora holding his hand and walking along.

_I have to kill him. To protect them. To protect everyone else. For mum and dad._

"Something on your mind?" Tonks asked, once the Invisibility Cloak was stowed away in his pocket.

"Not really. Why?"

"How about we grab some butterbeer at the Three Broomstick?" she suggested. "I need a drink or two after all that excitement."

"Sure, why not."

They were surprised to see someone in the bar. He was wearing muggle clothing and Harry didn't recognize him at first.

"He looks kinda familiar. Wait, EDWARD!"

Edward turned at Tonks' shout and beamed brightly.

"Tonksie and Harry! Het you've grown a lot." He commented at Harry, who was still staring at him.

"So have you. What have you been doing?" he exclaimed.

Edward Becker grinned. He was used to this sort of reactions nowadays. Once he graduated with Tonks and Hestia, he looked for a job that would suit him. Being a muggleborn and an average student, he sat idle for three months, living on his savings. As his life was going downhill, he broke up with Hestia, not wanting to drag her to his misery. Then one day someone suggested him to join the army. The person meant it as a joke, but the idea stuck. Of course, he couldn't join the British Army because he couldn't wake up before 8am even if his life depended on him, but he had an idea about what to do with his life.

"Working out a bit for my work. Magic helped, of course, but I live mostly a muggle life now. So, what are you doing here Auror Tonks?" he tried to divert the attention away from him and it worked... for a while.

"...so now we are basically enjoying our time as long as it is still enjoyable. So exactly what do you do, Ed?" she asked him with narrowed eyes, daring him to change the topic again.

"Hey why so serious?" he said uneasily, inching away from her. When she continued to glare, he sighed and pulled out a card from his pocket.

"Here, visit me in a few weeks, I'll explain. I can't talk here."

"You better have a good explanation mate, she doesn't look happy." Harry commented, looking warily at a scowling Tonks.

"And I had to bear those looks all throughout school." He sighed exasperatedly.

...

The man looked at the figure in fear, wondering who on earth had the balls to take down four Death Eaters singlehandedly. True, they were all new recruits, but that didn't mean they were totally untrained. The figure pulled off the hood and was revealed to be a woman.

_A bloody woman took out four of us?_

With a lazy flick of her wand, his right leg was broken and he screamed in pain.

"Do you know who led the Ministry raid?" she asked him coldly but he didn't answer.

Another flick and the bones in his left hand were shattered.

"Last chance. Do you know who led the raid at the Ministry?"

"No... I didn't... join then..."

"You shouldn't have joined _ever_."

She looked on as the man breathed his last, his neck broken. He was young. He could've chosen the other way. But he chose to ne a Death Eater. She wouldn't show any mercy.

Andromeda Tonks wasn't feeling very merciful nowadays.

_A/N: review please!_


	34. Mortal Enemy

**34. Mortal Enemy**

It was a dangerous mission. They knew that very well. Unfortunately, they had not much to prepare against. They were practically flying blind here. The place was under the Fidelius, unplottable, and no doubt heavily guarded. The only way to get in was either getting the Secret Keeper to disclose the secret, or by side-along apparation. Most likely Voldemort himself was the Secret Keeper, so capturing the Secret Keeper was out of the question. That left side-along apparation as the only choice left.

The trouble with that was the fact that Rabastan Lestrange seldom left the Headquarters. Most of the time the Tracer spell Susan put on him pointed to a much generalized area. At first they thought Susan had messed up the spell somehow, since the spell was supposed to pinpoint the location of the one being traced, but later they understood that the Fidelius Charm was actually blocking the spell partially.

It would've been easier if they could barge in with a full force of Aurors and combat specialist Unspeakables and take down Riddle for good, but Harry confessed that Voldemort outclassed him by a large margin. They didn't have a plan to negate this advantage and hence had to wait until they could think of a strategy where Harry wasn't going one-on-one with Voldemort in a duel. He might have survived him quite a few times, but his luck could only carry him on so far. That, and Voldemort underestimating him the last time they met. He was sure Voldemort wouldn't be as stupid to do the same mistake again seeing that Harry had burnt his wand to ashes the last time they met. One simply doesn't become the most feared wizard in a century without considerable brains to go with power and cruelty.

So for now, they had to sneak in and kill the snake and escape. Andromeda and Sirius researched about horcruxes and found that if someone makes more than seven horcruxes, his soul will kind of 'explode'. It was like a balloon. Blow too much air in it, and BAM!

Which, fortunately, would save Harry all the pain of thinking up a good plan to get rid of Voldemort. So they wouldn't have to worry if Riddle became aware of their horcrux-hunting as long they were back home safely.

After several long and tiring arguments and debates, it was decided that Andromeda and Harry would go to this mission. Andromeda, because she had an extensive knowledge about Dark Arts and wards. Harry, because he was the only one from them who has faced Voldemort and was more likely to win in a fight than the others. To general surprise, it was Andromeda who supported Harry's inclusion. Later, Harry went to her room to ask her about it.

"Come in, Harry."

He sat down beside her, absently noting that there was still a second pillow on the bed that belonged to Ted.

"Why did you want me to come with you?" he asked quietly. She smiled at him.

"Because I want the best to watch my back once we are there."

He grinned at her flattering answer, but wasn't convinced.

"No seriously."

"I am serious." She replied with a little chuckle, glad that Sirius wasn't here. "If I am being honest, you are better than Sirius and Nymphadora when it comes to wand work, maybe even better than me."

He nodded, but then he remembered something.

"But when I went after Lestrange you said that you'd rather I stayed safe. Don't get me wrong, I'm very glad that you are taking me, but what changed your mind?"

Instead of answering, Andromeda looked out of the window. The neighbourhood was quiet, peaceful. She took a deep breath and Harry noticed that her eyes contained more moisture than they had a few seconds back.

"I thought about what you said to me that day and I realized that you are right. I wish I could hide you away from all these, maybe take you and flee to France or some other country where no one will be after your life. But I have learnt that the more we stall, more people will lose their lives, their families and... loved ones. I know you have to do it and all I can do is making sure you come out as victorious with minimum loss on our side."

He understood her point and squeezed her hand in reply.

So the wait began.

They took turns to check on Rabastan's location regularly. Andromeda packed a bag with some 'tools' they would be using, ready to leave at moments' notice. Harry's sleep became lighter as his body was always tensed, anticipating to get a safe location and then target the younger Lestrange.

Dumbledore visited Harry while they were waiting. He was, of course, unaware of their horcrux hunt and no one saw any plausible reason to burden him with that knowledge. He inquired about Harry's Occlumency lessons and was quite happy to see that Andromeda did her job perfectly as even he could not break through Harry's defences after trying different methods for ten minutes. Despite the headache, Harry was glad for it. If one of the best Legilimens of the time could not bring down his barrier in ten minutes, it was probably safe to assume that the other wouldn't have it much easy, either.

The much awaited 'call' came a week before the start of school. It was getting dark when Sirius checked and found that Rabastan was now at the outskirts of Richmond. They were preparing to leave when Tonks yanked Harry to her room and before he could express his surprise, she pulled his head towards her and kissed him deeply. Without protesting, he returned the favour.

Not after too long, she broke off. Closing her eyes, she leaned her head on his forehead.

"Promise me you and mum would come back safely." She whispered.

"Promise." He whispered back. She smiled weakly and hugged him tightly. Then she let go of him and nodded towards the door. If Andromeda or Sirius noticed Harry's absence for the few moments, they pretended not to.

"Let's do it." Harry said, looking at Andromeda, who nodded. Sirius came forward and pulled both of them to an embrace.

"Be safe." Was all he said.

"Good luck." Tonks whispered. Mother and daughter looked at each other and without actually speaking they agreed that they would see each other in a while.

Then Andromeda turned towards Harry, and with a final nod, they clutched each others' hands and disapparated.

...

"Wards?"

"Negative." She answered after a few moments.

Making a mental note to ask her how she detected wards later, he nodded and reapplied the silencing charms on his feet again and she did the same. It wouldn't do to screw up the mission because their silencing spells wore off their feet.

Rabastan Lestrange was talking with a mousy man. It was more intimidating than talking, though. From what could be heard, the Death Eater was demanding more 'supplies' from the mousy man, who was mumbling about 'suffering losses'.

Under the Cloak, Andromeda and Harry looked at each other and with a nod Harry pulled out a little stone from his pocket and handed it to Andromeda. Carefully she tapped her wand on the stone and it glowed as red for a moment.

When it appeared that Rabastan was finished with his work, they went closer and put their wands back to their pockets and held their breath.

This was the most difficult and uncertain part of the whole mission. Even if the timing went wrong by less than a second, this whole thing could screw up.

Harry hooked one arm with Andromeda and got ready. Andromeda was clutching the little stone tightly, waiting to pounce. They had chosen their spots very carefully. Harry had the best reflexes while Andromeda was the one who could handle all kinds of magical travel most gracefully.

With a deep breath, Harry inched his palm forward so the material of his Invisibility Cloak was centimetres away from Lestrange's arm. Taking a quick glance at the partially exposed Dark Mark, he waited for the right moment, looking at his face with immense concentration.

Rabastan's head tilted up a bit, and his body became a little tensed. Just as they practised a million times with Sirius. This was when he was concentrating on the location. Then his body crouched inwards, indicating that he was preparing for the sudden turning. Andromeda held her fist close to the Death Eater, and prepared herself too.

Just as Rabastan twisted, Harry managed to grab his arm and as soon as they landed, Andromeda slapped the little stone on the Death Eater's body, who dropped on the floor at once. Quickly Harry pulled out his wand and looked around.

The room was empty, but the loud 'CRACK!' caused by the apparation was bound to get some attention if they were in the right place. Quickly Harry passed another little stone to Andromeda and she tapped her wand on it within a second.

To their relief, a hooded figure came to inquire. Unfortunately for the figure, as soon as he stepped in the room, Andromeda threw the stone at him and the figure dropped just like Rabastan did a moment ago.

"I like these." Harry whispered and Andromeda winked at him. The stone was a creation of Andromeda, nicknamed 'Stonner'. It was like a solid Stupefy spell. All you had to do was tap your wand on it and then throw it at the target. It was almost invisible, silent and looked like a harmless pebble. Most importantly, it didn't throw back the target and make loud noises like the spell did. In close encounter, this was literally a jewel.

"We are in the right place. This is Yaxley, a suspected Death Eater." Andromeda commented once she took his wand, snapped it in half, bound him and hit him with a proper Stunner. While the Stonner pebbles were silent, the effects wore off after fifteen minutes. A powerful spell could, however, knock someone out for over three hours.

Doing the same to Rabastan, Harry asked, "What are we doing with them?"

"Take a chunk of his hair." She pointed at Yaxley, rummaging at her compressed bag. He did as told and waited for her to find the correct vial. Moments later, she pulled out a vial of muddy liquid and Harry dropped the chunk of hair in it and it turned a dark grey colour.

"Go on and take it." She encouraged him and wrinkling his nose, he gulped down half the vial. The Polyjuice Potion was flawless, and seconds later Yaxley replaced Harry. His clothes had a self-expanding charm on them so they grew as his height and bulk increased.

"Blimey, he's disgusting." He said sourly.

"Go to the next room and see if it is clear." Andromeda reminded him and he walked out of the room.

She looked back at the original Yaxley. From her sources (mainly Death Eaters about to die), she knew that Yaxley was one of the Death Eaters who participated in the Ministry raid. She didn't know if he was the one who killed Ted, but why take a chance? Making sure that Harry wasn't in sight, she murmured the two words, hatred flowing in her senses.

"Avada Kedavra."

She saw the stiff body going totally limp and looked away quickly. She didn't have a problem using the last Unforgivable, but she was not a monster. She didn't enjoy the death of her victims like Death Eaters did.

After a minute and half, Harry returned.

"Clear. Did you cast any spells? I might have seen a light or something."

"I don't know, could be a trick of the light." She pointed at the chandelier above and Harry shrugged.

"Maybe. Let's go, c'mon."

The next room, as Harry promised, was empty. There was another hooded figure in the corridor beyond it. Before Andromeda could cast any spell, Harry quickly spoke up.

"Have you seen the snake?"

The figure, who appeared to be a burly middle aged man, grunted.

"Might've seen it upstairs. Why?"

"Eh, I'd like to kill it. Scares me shitless, that thing." He faked a light shiver. The figure nodded.

"Aye. Tell me if you ever decide to."

No sooner than he turned away from Harry, a quick full body-bind from Harry dropped him to the floor, but Andromeda, who was used to casting a cushioning charm, thanks to her daughter's clumsiness, prevented any loud sounds.

"Thanks." Harry whispered to the invisible Andromeda.

"Welcome. Keep going."

He stunned the man, wiped his memory, bound him and snapped his wand.

Andromeda had expected Voldemort's headquarters to contain more wards and protection against intruders. It seemed that Voldemort was arrogant enough to think that his Death Eaters would never bring anyone here, intentionally or not. Well, it was all his loss.

As they passed two more corridors, they faced two more guards and they were stunned and bound like the others too. At last they reached a hall beyond which there was an elegant staircase leading up to the next floor.

Unfortunately, there were seven hooded figures patrolling the hall.

"What was the noise?" one of them asked Harry, taking him as Yaxley the Death Eater.

"Nothing." He replied shortly. He had to go upstairs quickly. Not that he didn't want to take down the Death Eaters, but the more time he wasted here, chances of their success would decrease. That was a risk he was unwilling-

"There's someone here!" suddenly one of the guards shouted as Harry stepped in the hallway. Others quickly pulled out their wands and scanned the hall for any intruder.

Harry was pretty sure that Andromeda was still outside the hall, so it meant he must have tripped some ward. Thinking quickly, he decided to distract them from Andromeda's direction.

"I think I heard something over there!" he shouted at the others, pointing away from Andromeda's probable location and everyone immediately started throwing stunners at that direction.

Andromeda took the advantage and started stunning the guards herself. Within five seconds, all the guards were lying on the ground.

"Ha! You got only three." Harry said.

"Oh please, did you even pull out your wand?" she poked Harry in the ribs. Rolling his eyes, he asked the important question.

"Did I walk into a ward?"

"Maybe." She replied. "I would guess that it was a ward to detect anyone without the Dark Mark."

"But this Yaxley dude had the Mark." He rolled up his sleeve to prove his point.

"Yes, but you didn't. It's the magic of a person that really counts, not their appearance. Yaxley's wand wouldn't suit you even if you are using his body." She explained him. Understanding, he nodded and gestured her to lead the way. It was a bit awkward, seeing that she was still under the Invisibility Cloak and he couldn't see her.

No sooner than they reached the upper landing, a voice called out at them.

"Yaxley! I've been looking for you."

The speaker was quickly approaching them and Harry noted that he moved like a bull.

"Really? What can I do for you?" Harry replied coolly and the man slowed down, with a frown on his face. Seemed like that wasn't the right thing to say.

"You do remember that the Dark Lord will be here within an hour don't you?" the man asked dubiously.

"Of course I do." He replied smoothly, inwardly dancing in joy at the knowledge that Voldemort wasn't here.

"Then shouldn't we finish our task right away?"

"Yes of course, I must have forgotten." He tried to cover up, but evidently, it wasn't working well.

"Forgotten? How can you forget something like this? Do you even remember what you have to do?" he asked with suspicion and Harry noticed his hand slowly drifting towards his pocket.

"Ah, screw that."

He fired a stunner, but his opponent wasn't incompetent like the guards downstairs. A shield was erected just in time and a Killing Curse was thrown at him the next second, quickly dodging it, Harry sent a barrage of curses at his opponent and though the man seemed a good dueller, he knew he wouldn't last long against Harry's raw power. But before Harry could bring down his shields, Andromeda decided to make it short and hit the man with a stunner from behind.

"Thanks." Said Harry. "A little more of that duel and the whole place would've been alerted."

"Yes. Now stay here and watch my back and I'll go forward and see if anyone is on guard. We better avoid pleasant chats with unpleasant Death Eaters right now. I think that is Rookwood. Tie him up, will you?" she said, referring to the fallen Death Eater.

"Sure. Go ahead."

As her footsteps died away, he looked at the man on his feet. Rookwood was the murderer of Susan's parents. He knew the pain of living without parents and this man brought the same fate for Susan and Sam.

"Avada Kedavra."

The green light struck the man silently, wiping away his soul from his body, and Harry felt a tiny bit of regret. He should've suffered before death.

A minute later, Andromeda's footstep could be heard again. She was not using the silencing charm on her feet in front of Harry as he needed to know her approximate position.

"Clear?" he asked.

"Yeah. Two guards are taken care of. Ready to go?"

"No."

A surprised Andromeda was about to say something but Harry hushed her.

"Get ready, it's coming." He warned and Andromeda removed the cloak. Being invisible won't help now.

"C'mon Nagini." He muttered. He could sense the snake approaching very fast. He signalled Andromeda to get ready and stay in position.

Soon, a slithering noise could be heard and within moments, the snake was in front of them.

"_You are massssstersssss enemy... Musssssst kill..." _hissed the snake in parseltongue and reared to strike.

"_Stop. We are here to help you." _Harry hissed back and the snake paused, sparing a glance at Andromeda. Slowly, Harry moved around it, so that the snake, who was following his every movement, had its tail at Andromeda now.

"_Don't need... any help..." _it said.

"_Too bad then." _

As fast as lightning, he put down his wand on the floor and Andromeda followed immediately. The snake sensed foul play and struck.

Unfortunately, it met an invisible barrier. Worse still, it sensed that the barrier was something more than just a barrier. Looking around, it noticed four glowing stones on the ground surrounding it.

Harry breathed a sigh of relief. The method they were using to terminate Nagini was very old and dark. While moving around it, Harry had dropped two little stones with silencing charms on them, and while the snake's back was turned, Andromeda dropped the other two, creating a square. Around the middle age, this was known as the 'Square of Justice'. Four pre-charged rune stones were positioned in a square. At least two powerful wizards were needed to activate the stones. When activated, the stones created a ward that siphoned magic off anything inside the square.

When pureblood supremacy was at its highest, muggleborns were captured and released inside the Square of Justice. Theoretically, it was supposed to take away their magic and leave them as muggles. However, a wizard or witch's body and magic were so much intermixed that it usually ended up physically disabling the subject, and sometimes even paralyse the whole body of the subject permanently. Not that the 'Judges' minded it that much.

When the ritual became very popular, a few purebloods lost their own magic attempting it because they weren't powerful enough to carry it out properly. Finally, a few rebel muggleborns captured a bunch of bigoted purebloods and stripped them of their magic. In the court, they simply said that it was an accident and therefore, unintentional. The court was, of course, sceptical and the victims all explained what exactly what happened. However, the muggleborns' lawyer reminded the judges that the law clearly stated that if the statement of a wizard and any other species were contradictory in a case, the wizard's words should be considered more accurate. Since the victims couldn't be considered wizards due to their lack of magic, their statements held little value. Against their wishes, the Wizengamot announced the muggleborns free of all charges. The next day, those muggleborns fled the country, their lawyer was killed, and the Square of Justice was declared as an illegal object and possession of it would result in no less than three months in Azkaban.

The Black family, however, cared little about laws. Their family vault had one set and Andromeda had retrieved it for the mission, learned how to use it, and now she watched as the snake thrashed inside the little square and felt a little pity for it. The magic of a snake was nowhere as powerful as a wizard. It was likely to die within a few minutes.

Harry tried to block out the inhuman sound Nagini was making. Not for the first time, he cursed his ability to speak parseltongue. He decided never to be near a dying snake again if he could help it.

It was five whole minutes before the stones stopped glowing, indicating that the horcrux was destroyed. Nagini was lying straight as a rod, stiff.

"I guess we can say that our mission in successful." Andromeda said with a tired smile and Harry smiled at her and nodded.

Yes, the mission was successful. His mortal enemy was, once again, truly mortal.

_A/N: reviews are welcome._


End file.
